


Blood Ties and Betrayal: Book One

by burynr08



Series: Blood Ties and Betrayal: The Story of Cassie Black [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Adventure & Romance, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Book 1: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Community: HPFT, Drama & Romance, Eventual Smut, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Friends to Lovers, Hurt/Comfort, POV Original Female Character, Post-First War with Voldemort, Secret Relationship, Severus Snape Has a Heart, Severus Snape-centric, Slow Burn, Teacher-Student Relationship, The Golden Trio Era (Harry Potter), The Ministry of Magic (Harry Potter) is Terrible, Wordcount: Over 100.000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-06
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:15:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 22
Words: 110,199
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22567684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/burynr08/pseuds/burynr08
Summary: Cassie Black, the daughter of Lord Voldemort and Bellatrix Lestrange, has wanted nothing more than to become an Auror. During her seventh year at Hogwarts, she must deal not only with Minister Fudge's mistrust of her true intentions, but Dumbledore's unending manipulation to get what he wants. Her blossoming attraction to lifetime friend Professor Snape, who she assumes will be horrified if he finds out her true feelings, threatens to ruin everything she holds dear. (Starts during Sorceror's Stone. Severus/OC).**Book Two complete, Book Three has started. Go to the series page to check them out!**
Relationships: Cassiopeia Black (OC)/Severus Snape, Severus Snape/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Blood Ties and Betrayal: The Story of Cassie Black [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1679296
Comments: 231
Kudos: 176





	1. Prologue

Prologue - 1974

It was a cool night in June, and screams could be heard for what seemed like miles outside of the Lestrange estate. The air was still, the moisture saturating it promising the onslaught of precipitation to appear soon, the dark clouds that obstructed any view of the stars threatening to spill their contents from the heavens like tears. Any bystander that may have been there at the time would have sworn the impending storm was an omen, a prediction of the events that would soon follow.

More agonized screeching cut through the otherwise quiet atmosphere, and when the voice hit its crescendo, the first arrow of lightning tore through the sky like a blade cutting soft flesh. Thunder clapped quickly behind it, a sound so deafening that it nearly drowned out the next round of screams, this one coming soon after its predecessor.

Rain started to fall from the sky, the storm now closer in proximity to the gothic mansion, and winds started to disturb the carefully groomed trees and shrubs of the pristine grounds. Another scream, but this time, a voice from within the house was speaking at the same time.

"Close the window, would you? I don't want Bella getting wet," Narcissa commanded quietly to another witch that stood by her side in the large, intricately decorated bedroom. The brunette witch obeyed promptly, gracefully lifting the wand in her hand and flicking it. The stained glass window banged shut, not an easy feat against the winds that were now howling, the rain pelting against the house.

Narcissa's gaze never left her older sister, who was lying in a large bronze four-poster bed, her dark hair sticking against the sweat that had accumulated against her forehead. No longer screaming, Bellatrix was now taking the few precious moments between contractions to attempt to catch her breath. She locked eyes with her sister, looking as though she was about to say something when another cry escaped her throat.

"Now really, Narcissa. Tell me again why she refused to take any potions to help with the pain?" the brown-haired Death Eater said dully, watching Bellatrix writhe in agony as the next contraction overtook her. The blonde Black sister was about to answer when Bellatrix's cracking voice filled the room.

"Because," she seethed through clenched teeth, "There is no greater honor than feeling every moment of this. Now get out, Calista."

The brunette opened her mouth to protest, but Bellatrix already had her mind made up. "OUT!" she yelled, and Narcissa quickly opened the door to show the other woman out. Calista stepped across the threshold, looking bewildered as she joined the others who were waiting outside the room.

"Bella, that's the third person you've kicked out of this room tonight," Narcissa said gently, going to place a hand on top of her sister's shaking one.

"Not one of them deserves to bear witness to this," Bellatrix replied shortly, and her sister went to push back a strand of hair that had fallen across her face.

"Yes, of course," Narcissa said, knowing that it was always better to agree with Bellatrix, especially when she was in distress. "But making sure that you and the child are safe is of utmost importance - "

"I would never let anything happen to something this precious - " Bellatrix began to snarl, but was cut off by another intense contraction.

"I know, Bella, I know," Narcissa soothed. Her attention was drawn to the bedroom door as it opened once again, and this time a wizard with black hair and beard poked his head through, not daring to enter the room without direct permission from the laboring witch.

"Forgive me," he said swiftly, clearing his throat as his dark eyes surveyed the room with worry. "But the Dark Lord wanted me to make sure everything is going all right in here."

Bellatrix's demeanor changed in an instant, and she managed a strained smile as her chest heaved. "Rodolphus," she croaked, "Tell My Lord that everything is going smoothly. I just required more privacy at this point."

"But Bella, don't you think we should have more help in here? It can't be long before the babe is born, I expect," Bellatrix's husband responded, obviously feeling uncomfortable being in the room as his wife prepared to give birth, but more concerned that he would displease the Dark Lord by not offering enough help to the two witches.

"Fine, fine, send Sofia back in," Narcissa said impatiently, gesturing for Rodolphus to leave as another contraction was starting to take hold. She knew Bellatrix wouldn't approve of deciding for her, but Sofia Dolohov had already had two children of her own and would serve the most useful of all the female Death Eaters present.

Just as the master of the Lestrange household had predicted, it wasn't long before the expected baby made its debut to the world. It arrived with a high-pitched wail, its voice so loud that there didn't need to be an announcement to the waiting wizards that were just outside the bedroom. Bellatrix was pleased with the sound of the baby's cries that filled the room, knowing that she had just done what she needed to do to please her master. She took a few minutes to lie on her back and catch her breath, and when she sat up to survey the child she had just pushed out, she saw that her sister was wrapping it up in a black blanket.

"What is it?" she asked, peering down at the squished, red face that was peaking out from the ebony swaddle.

"It's a girl, Bella," Narcissa said with a warm smile. She lifted the bundle into her arms, and instinctively pulled her niece close to her chest.

"Well, give her to me," Bellatrix commanded, extending her arms out, but her sister shook her head quickly.

"No, Bella. He wanted to see the baby right away," Narcissa responded, looking concerned as she locked eyes with her older sister.

Bellatrix bit her bottom lip, then waved her hand towards the door. "Yes, of course, I'd nearly forgotten. Go, take her to him." Narcissa obeyed without another word, leaving the bedroom with the prized possession that Bellatrix had fussed over for nine months.

"You did well, Madam Lestrange," Sofia said, going to place her hand on the new mother's shoulder, but Bellatrix shrugged it off. She was normally cold to anyone's physical affections except for her sister's, and especially now, she was feeling apprehensive that the Dark Lord would be displeased with her somehow. Had she had her wand on her, she may have cursed the insolent witch for daring to touch her, but lucky for Sofia, her wand lay forgotten on the dresser across the room. So she waited in silence as Sofia started to clean up the rags and wash bins, hoping that she would soon hear the praise that she had been longing for her entire pregnancy.

She wanted to demand that someone inform her of what was going on outside the room, but she kept her composure. Only when the door opened again and her sister was coming back to her with the baby did she start to breathe normally again.

"Give her to me," Bellatrix repeated, and this time Narcissa complied, handing the bundle to her with a smile. Bellatrix nestled the baby into the crook of her arm, pulling back the blanket slightly to peer closer at her wrinkled face.

"Was he pleased?" Bellatrix asked quietly, her dark eyes cast down towards her child, not daring to look up at her sister as she was afraid to hear that she had failed.

"Yes, he is very pleased, Bella," Narcissa replied, and Bellatrix squealed in delight like a teenager at the revelation, startling the newborn that she was holding.

"Now, you must put her to your breast, so she can feed," Sofia interjected, and Bellatrix allowed her to help her place the baby where she needed to be. The child latched without issue and started to suckle, a sensation that made Bellatrix feel a bit like pulling the child off and handing her off to her sister again. But she willed herself to keep the baby there, knowing it was up to her and only her to nourish the Dark Lord's offspring. It was the highest honor she could ever dream to achieve, short of giving birth to his child in the first place.

Lord Voldemort did not enter the room to give Bellatrix Lestrange any sort of praise that night. Rather, he had taken her husband, brother-in-law, and the other wizards who had been present for the birth into London, to terrorize and murder a handful of Muggles. It was considered an exceedingly special night, having his heir enter the world, and a special night called for a special celebration; he allowed his followers to torture and kill without direction or reason. When Bellatrix heard about their activities the next day, she grew jealous that she had had to miss it.

Bellatrix was granted permission to name the baby girl, and at first, the task made her wary, as she wondered if it was some sort of test. Over the next few days as she rested, she mulled it over again and again, wracking her brain trying to remember if there was some name the Dark Lord had mentioned, or a family name of his that she was failing to recall. Only when she finally spoke with him face to face five days after their daughter's birth did she finally have the chance to ask him for his input, and she learned that there were no female family members of his that he wished to honor. Eventually, she chose Cassiopeia, a family name in the House of Black.

"That is a beautiful name, my loyal servant," Lord Voldemort said when Bellatrix told him, and she beamed with pride at his praise.

"I am completely, utterly humbled, My Lord," Bellatrix replied, lowering her head as best she could as she laid in bed. Earlier that day, he had scolded her lightly when she nearly jumped out of bed to bow when he had entered the room, nearly knocking over the occupied bassinet that was next to her. "But I must inquire again regarding the child's name."

"What seems to be the issue, Bella?" he asked, and Bellatrix's heart fluttered in her chest like it did every time he called her by her nickname, one that only family and close friends used with her.

"We've settled on a first name, My Lord, but I still wonder what would be an appropriate surname for her. We could use Lestrange, but as she is not Rodolphus' child, I don't find it to be very fitting. Unless, of course, my lord wishes to keep her parentage quiet to keep her safe - "

"I have no intention to keep her existence a secret. My followers and the rest of the world shall know that Lord Voldemort has an heir, and they shall tremble to think that one day she will help me to rule over them all." Bellatrix flushed with pleasure as he spoke these words, a renewed sense of pride flowing through her as she delighted in the fact that she had made this all possible, that she had been chosen to carry his child, that he was now alone with her once again in the master bedroom. "As I have no surname, then Black would be the most fitting. It's a name that one associates with prestige, with blood-purity and loyalty to my cause."

Bellatrix did not protest his decision, even though she felt a small pang of regret that she would not share a surname with the Dark Lord's daughter, even if she had given birth to her. For a fleeting moment, she considered divorcing Rodolphus just so she could share that association, but quickly decided against it; her desire to leave her husband of only a few years had already been refuted by her master even before they discussed producing an heir. It had been a day in which Bellatrix had been feeling particularly brave, and had expressed her desire to enter a romantic with the Dark Lord. She was not sure whether he chose to ignore her advances or did not understand them, but he had explained that what was most important was that the Black and Lestrange families keep their strong ties to one another. Whatever his thoughts were on her proposal, Bellatrix had been left feeling utterly humiliated, but still devoted to him as she ever was.

And so the baby was known as Cassiopeia Elladora Black, and it quickly became common knowledge among Lord Voldemort's followers that he had conceived her with Bellatrix Lestrange. Rodolphus, ever the devout Death Eater, freely boasted the honor of his wife being chosen to anyone who would listen. It wasn't long before the news reached the rest of the magical population.

The notion that Lord Voldemort had reproduced struck fear into the hearts of many; disagreements began to develop in the Ministry as to whether or not effort should be put into destroying the child. Anticipating this reaction from the ever skittish magical government, the child spent her first years between her mother's household and Malfoy Manor, always under the protection of a group of Death Eaters. When she reached the age of three, her father began to insist that she be present for some of his 'interrogations' to learn, an activity that would fuel her nightmares well into her teenage years.

Bellatrix, meanwhile, was as obsessed with the father of her child as ever, and her infatuation with him only grew as the years went on. She had affection for her child, no doubt, but her priority at all times was her master's cause; she only thought to dote on her daughter when Lord Voldemort himself expressed satisfaction with Cassiopeia. With her attention nearly always pulled elsewhere, the young witch received the majority of her parental love from Narcissa.

Under her father's guidance, she began to train in the magical arts at a very young age. He was elated that she was able to master a few charms using Bellatrix's wand by the age of four, and began teaching her more complicated spells soon after. Only when she refused to use magic to torture a small field mouse, did Lord Voldemort lose patience with her for the first time. From then on, he would view any hesitation or opposition to follow his commands as insubordination. His punishments were just as cruel as one would expect from the Dark Lord.

To the surprise of those that met her and knew what her parents were like, Cassiopeia remained a kind, empathetic child. The older she grew, the more she got used to her parents being away on missions and raids, and she grew closer to the Death Eaters that cared for her in their absence. Narcissa loved spending time with her niece outside of Bellatrix's influence, and when she found out she was pregnant, she was more than thrilled to have an older cousin for her unborn child. Cassiopeia, who was six years old when her cousin Draco was born, had never been around other children. She loved to stroke the newborn's platinum blond hair and sing him little songs she had made up, but jealousy started to take shape when she had less of her aunt's attention. More than once, she had to be removed from his nursery when objects nearby started to tremble and shatter, something that she rarely did on purpose.

Months after Draco's arrival, whispers traveled throughout the magical community that the bastard daughter of the Dark Lord was displaying monumental magical prowess, and rumors began to circulate that she had been able to perform absurd spells, such as force a dormant volcano to erupt, or disarm seven wizards at once in a duel. The fear-mongering of the magical folk prompted action, and the Ministry organized and attempted to take her from the Death Eaters' clutches. One night when they knew that Voldemort was off killing Muggles with his most trusted inner circle, Minister Eugenia Jenkins sent the bulk of her Aurors to the Lestrange residence to retrieve her. For many intense minutes, it looked as though the surprised handful of Death Eaters was going to succumb to their attack. But a message had been promptly sent to the Dark Lord, and he had Apparated back to protect his offspring, just in time to kill most of the Aurors before any of them knew what had happened.

From then on, it was decided that she would always be under his or Bellatrix's protection, with no exceptions. For nearly a year, Cassiopeia was forced to witness many tortures, kidnappings, and murders, as her parents were not about to slow down their activities and lose momentum in the war. Lucius, who now was starting to look at the world differently since having his son, once suggested to Bellatrix that seeing these violent things might not be good for a six-year-old. It was the first time that his master used an Unforgivable curse on him.

Cassiopeia's saving grace, as it was for the rest of the magical community and Muggles alike, was Lord Voldemort's downfall. She was no longer subjected to seeing people being maimed and killed, and her mother barely spared a few minutes of her time to comfort her before taking off with Rodolphus and Rabastan to try to find their master. It wasn't long after, that the Longbottoms were tortured to the point of insanity for information, and Cassiopeia lost her mother to a lifelong sentence to Azkaban as well.

It was not the ideal upbringing in which a morally sound, level-headed witch could arise. But the love that she shared with her aunt gave her a fighting chance, and the Malfoys were set to raise her now that her parents were gone. And as luck would have it, a former inner-circle Death Eater known as Severus Snape was given the task to look after her as best he could, as he already had an amicable relationship with the Malfoys. He had dire warnings from Albus Dumbledore that no matter what happened in the next several years, the daughter of Lord Voldemort needed to receive her education at Hogwarts, or other dark influences surrounding her might bring destruction to them all.


	2. Platform Nine and Three-Quarters

The hustle and bustle of platform nine and three-quarters was something that was so incredibly familiar to Cassiopeia Black, that she barely registered all of the students and families around her as she made her way to the train with her belongings. Her mind was elsewhere, caught in memories of the previous years she had been at this very same place. One would assume that since she was going to be entering her seventh year at Hogwarts that she would be solemnly realizing that this would be her last time boarding the train to go to Hogwarts; however, the young witch was instead pondering how lonely this year was going to be for her.

Her two closest friends had been a year older than her and therefore had graduated from Hogwarts in the previous spring. Even now, in this first official school year activity, she was unsure of who she was going to talk to while the Hogwarts Express glided through the countryside. But it wasn't like she wasn't used to being the odd one out; with everyone knowing who her family was, she was ostracized from the majority of the magical community from the beginning of her magical education.

Luckily for her, just as she was contemplating finding a compartment full of first years that didn't know her and staring out the window silently for the entire trip, the Weasley family burst through the barrier. Her heart soared at seeing the gaggle of redheads making their way towards the train, and her uncle must have noticed at the same time because she heard a low groan rumble from his chest.

"The blood traitor brigade has arrived," Lucius sneered quietly, and Cassie looked up to him to shoot him a glare.

"Calm down, Uncle," Cassie hissed back, "No one is asking you to talk to them. Actually, I prefer it if you didn't."

" _I_ won't talk to them," Draco interjected, and the blond boy crossed his arms over his chest as he watched the Weasleys with an air of smugness that rivaled his father's.

"Thank god," Cassie replied, rolling her eyes. She was about to abandon the Malfoys to go greet her favorite family and congratulate Ron on starting his first year when another person among their group made her freeze. It was a boy with messy, jet-black hair and round glasses, and even though she had never actually seen him in person before, she knew who he was in an instant. " _Shit,_ " she said under her breath, and her uncle looked down at her, a sly half-smile adorning his lips.

"What's the matter, Cass? Scared of an eleven-year-old?" Lucius goaded, his silver eyes sparkling with glee at Cassie's sudden discomfort at having the Potter boy among her friends.

"No," she replied calmly, taking a deep breath. "Not _scared_. Just...not wanting to have this introduction already."

Lucius clicked his tongue in disapproval. "You should be proud of your family, Miss Black, and your mother would be appalled at your attitude."

"I know. You remind me every day, Uncle." She started to push her cart of belongings towards the train again, not wanting to hear, yet again, another speech on the glory that was her heritage. She wished her aunt would back her up at least a little bit today, but Narcissa was so emotional over Draco leaving home for school that she had barely registered what anyone was saying for the last week. At the moment, she was fussing over smoothing Draco's robes so much that he was trying to pull himself from her clutches to follow his cousin.

" _Mother_ , I'm fine!" he whispered hurriedly and yanked his robes from her pale hands.

"Oh - Cassie, can he ride in your compartment?" Narcissa called after them. With a flick of her wrist, Cassie's luggage and large silver cauldron floated up and into an empty compartment, stacking themselves neatly into a corner. Cassie sighed, turning to look at Draco, who was still watching the Weasley clan along with the Potter boy. She wanted to say no right away, that he needed to fend for himself (that and she didn't want to deal with his pompous attitude for the entire train ride), but then she recalled what it had been like to be a first-year, not knowing anyone.

She opened her mouth to tell him he could ride with her when suddenly Draco's attention snapped towards another group of people. Cassie groaned internally, as it was a familiar group of "ex"-Death Eaters along with their children.

"Crabbe! Goyle!" Draco called, waving for his friends to come over to him. "I've got a compartment over here!"

"No, you don't," Cassie interjected right away. "You and your lackeys can find another place. I'm not sitting with a trio of first years." Draco opened his mouth to argue, and with another flick of her wrist, his luggage started to move down the platform on its own. Draco was about to take off after it, but Cassie caught his arm in her hand. "If I hear that you start any trouble at all on this train, don't expect me to help you," she whispered, not wanting her already worried aunt to overhear her and start fussing all over again. "I mean it!"

Draco didn't say anything, but his eyes drifted over to the Weasleys again. It made Cassie's blood boil that his disdain for them had been passed down from his father, but she didn't have a chance to threaten him, because Narcissa was watching them closely now. She let go of Draco's arm and he took off after his things, Crabbe and Goyle in pursuit with him. Now that they were out of her hair, she intended to climb onto the train and take her seat, but Narcissa had walked up to her.

"You aren't going to say goodbye, Cassie?" she asked, tears glistening in her eyes as they had been for the past several days.

"Sorry, Aunt Cissy," Cassie said quietly, giving her aunt a small hug. "Thank you for letting me stay with you this summer."

"Oh, don't thank me," Narcissa said, pulling out of the hug and sniffling as she looked at her niece. "We both know you didn't want to be there."

"I know, but either way, thanks."

"You will look after him, won't you?" Narcissa asked, and Cassie turned to follow her gaze; she was watching Draco and the other two boys, who were now heaving their things onto a compartment down the train.

"He doesn't need looking after. He needs someone to look after the kids he decides he doesn't like."

Her aunt gave her a disapproving look, and Cassie sighed. "Yes, Aunt Cissy. You know I will." With that, Narcissa started to make her way towards Draco to say her goodbyes to him, and Lucius was still chatting with the fathers of Crabbe and Goyle. She started to climb onto the train again, when a high-pitched, 'Oh!' behind her made her turn suddenly.

Cassie smacked right into Molly Weasley when she turned around, and the witch pulled her into a bear hug without a second's hesitation.

"Oh, Cassie! I've missed you, dear! How have you been?" Molly asked as she squeezed Cassie so tight that she could barely catch her breath.

"G-good!" Cassie choked, and Molly released her vice grip on her, holding her at arm's length to look her up and down. It had been a month since Cassie had come by the Burrow for a visit, and Molly was used to worrying over the teenager's well-being.

"It wasn't just me that missed you, dear, the whole family did," Molly said. "Did the Malfoys treat you all right?" The reason she was so concerned was that the previous summer breaks, Cassie had spent the majority of her time at the Burrow. She had been best friends with Charlie since her first year, and they had dated in her fifth and sixth years; the Weasleys were more than happy to have her spend time with them and away from the influences of the Malfoys. But Charlie had broken up with Cassie near the end of the last school year, as he hadn't wanted to be distracted by a long-distance romance while starting his career studying dragons in Romania. Molly and Arthur, who were like parents to Cassie, had insisted that Cassie still spend time with the family, but Cassie just couldn't bring herself to do it just yet.

"Yeah," Cassie replied, and she forced herself to smile at Molly. "Have you heard from Charlie lately? How's he doing?"

"Oh, he's fine, deary," Molly said. "Busy, like we expected." Her demeanor deflated a bit as soon as Charlie was mentioned, something that happened every time he was brought up in their conversations. Cassie knew it was because Molly completely disagreed with his decision to break up with her, but Cassie still couldn't help but wonder how he was doing with his adult life.

"Good," Cassie said. The whistle sounded, signaling that the train was departing soon, and Molly pulled her into another hug.

"You will look after Ron?" she asked, echoing what Narcissa had asked of Cassie not that long ago.

"Of course, Molly," Cassie said warmly. Finally boarding the train, she was pleasantly surprised to see that her compartment now held two more seventh-year students. The first was Juniper Ringwald, a Ravenclaw, and the other was Alpit Khatri, a Hufflepuff. Like Cassie, they were aspiring to be Aurors after graduation, and the three of them had become somewhat close as they helped one another in their studies.

"Hey June, hey Al!" Cassie said as she got into her seat. "How's your summer?"

They greeted each other and caught up on the past few months, and Cassie found herself breathing a sigh of relief. She knew this year was going to be immensely different having Charlie and Tonks gone, but the past hour had shown her that she would be just fine. As the three of them talked and ate food they had bought off the trolley, Cassie made a mental note of how pleasant this train ride seemed to be going as compared to other years. She was used to younger students, mainly first years, coming by her compartment to gawk at her in either awe or fear. But she knew why there was a lack of unwanted passersby this year: Harry Potter was on the train.

She was dreading the moment that they would meet, something that would inevitably happen at some point while at Hogwarts. She, like everyone else, had heard that he had grown up with Muggles, and she didn't know how much of his back story he knew. At some point, he would know that her father had murdered his parents, and she hoped he wouldn't hate her for it. It was a worry she had with almost anyone new that she met, that they would judge her by her family, especially when they or their loved ones had suffered because of them. But this would be more public, more anticipated by the rest of the students, and she had worked so hard over the past few years to not be viewed as nothing more than Lord Voldemort's daughter.

Her thoughts were interrupted when a round-faced boy suddenly opened the door of their compartment, telling them tearfully that he had lost his toad. Cassie already felt bad for the boy, who seemed to be searching for it alone, so she reluctantly agreed to help him look for it.

"Either of you want to help?" Cassie said to her companions, and Alpit stood up the follow her, although she knew he'd probably be distracted by the compartment full of sixth-year girls just down the aisle. Juniper, on the other hand, had already pulled out her copy of _Advanced_ _Potion Making._

"Sorry, Cass. I'm going to read the first few chapters. Gotta get a leg up for Snape's class, you know?" she said, and started to read. Had it been anyone else, Cassie would have thought she was making excuses not to help look for a first year's lost toad. But she knew Juniper had to work extra hard to do well in Potions, as Cassie had the same issue. She was currently traveling with a silver cauldron because she melted one of Snape's last school year and owed him a new one. She had seen him several times this summer at Malfoy Manor, but as part of her punishment, he was making her lug it on the train and to Hogwarts for all the other students to see, rather than just let her give it to him during the summer. It was a classic Snape move, one that Cassie expected; and even though it made her life harder, she couldn't help but find the humor in it.

She and the boy looked for an hour before Cassie found the toad named Trevor hopping outside Neville's compartment. She carried it along with her as she then had to look for the owner of the toad, and when she found him, she was displeased to find that he had stumbled across her cousin's compartment.

"If I find it, I'll be sure to give it a good stomp before I give it back, yeah?" she heard Draco saying to the poor boy. "On second thought, why don't you give us your shoe? I wouldn't want to get disgusting toad guts on mine." She heard Crabbe and Goyle's laughter follow, and the boy turned around to flee just as she came up behind him.

"I've found him," she said, handing him the toad carefully, and then he hurried away. She saw Draco's smile leave his face when he saw his cousin suddenly appear in the doorway. "Impressive, Draco."

"He's an idiot," Draco said haughtily as if that justified his actions.

"I'm watching you," she warned, glaring at her cousin, who looked on the verge of pouting. "I've never had a problem with cursing bullies before, and don't think I won't have a problem doing it to you. And that goes for all three of you."

"I'd tell father - " Draco started, but Cassie was used to his game. She stepped into the compartment then, bending down so her face was inches from Draco's.

"So tell him," she said quietly, the tone in her voice dangerous. "See what happens, yeah?"

She left then, leaving the eleven-year-olds to mull over her warning, and she sought after the toad boy again. She found him sitting in his compartment, along with a bushy-haired girl.

"Sorry about them. The blond one is my little cousin. Nasty piece of work, best stay away from him if you can."

"But what if he's in my house?" the boy said miserably, holding his toad close to his chest.

"He'll be in Slytherin, no doubt. For some reason you don't strike me as the type," Cassie said giving him a small smile.

"What house are you in?" the girl piped up, and Cassie hesitated for a second.

"Slytherin."

"Oh. I'm hoping for Gryffindor, or maybe Ravenclaw," she replied, and Cassie noted that her tone was a bit imperious. "I'm Hermione Granger, by the way."

"And I'm Neville Longbottom," the boy with the toad added, and Cassie's stomach nearly fell out of her. She had been worried about meeting Harry Potter since she got to platform nine and three-quarters, and here she had been helping another student that she also had wanted to delay coming across.

"Oh, nice to meet you both," she said, starting to leave when the pushy girl spoke again.

"And what's your name?" she asked like she was owed and answer, and Cassie forced a fake smile on her face. She was intending to tutor first years this year, and already she hoped that this one didn't need any extra help.

"Cassie Black." Hermione didn't react, but Neville did; his teary eyes suddenly went wide and his face went from a shade of pale that it probably normally was, to a sort of yellow-green. "Anyway, I'll be heading back now," she said quickly, and left before either of them could say anything else. She was hurrying, pushing past other students so she could just go back to her compartment where Juniper was hopefully still reading quietly when she heard her name being called.

"Cass!" came two voices in unison, and she didn't have to see to know that Fred and George had found her. She was almost to her compartment, so she stepped inside, and waved for the two third-years to join her. Juniper, who was indeed still reading, huffed in annoyance when she saw the ginger-haired twins enter.

"Hey, long time no see!" said Fred.

"You miss us?" said George, and Cassie nodded, pulling them both into a hug.

"Sorry our brother is such a royal idiot," Fred said, patting her on the arm when they pulled apart.

"A downright nitwit - "

"A blubbering fool - "

"Alright, that's enough," Cassie said, giggling. "He had to make the decision that was best for him, you know. School romances don't always last."

"He's not going to find anyone as good as you," Fred told her.

"He'll have to end up marrying a dragon," George added, making Cassie laugh even harder.

They bantered for a few more minutes, and the twins left after Juniper cleared her throat in petty annoyance several times. Cassie sat down then, looking out the window and taking in the sight of the twisting woods that they were flying past.

"Has Al been back?" she asked, and Juniper glared up at her, obviously not grateful for another interruption.

"No. Probably off chasing some girls as usual," she answered and her eyes fell back down to the text in front of her.

"Oh, relax, June. Snape's classes aren't that bad," Cassie teased, knowing that was far from the truth.

"Easy for you to say, being teacher's pet," June snapped back.

"Woah, hey, you know I was just kidding," Cassie said, throwing up her hands. "I know just as well as you do how much of a prick he can be."

"No, you _don't_ know," June retorted, now snapping her book shut and leaning forward. "You're in Slytherin, so he goes easier on you."

"He does _not_ go easier on me - "

"And you know him outside of school! Don't you two like, go to Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley together on breaks?"

Cassie was silent for a few seconds, surprised that anyone had taken the time to notice anything like that. Yes, she and Snape had a friendship outside of their professor-student dynamic, but they had also known each other since she was a toddler. "So what? I can't help it that I've known him my whole life. But I can guarantee you that he doesn't give me special treatment in his classes. Do you know how many times he's had me in detention for screwing up a potion?"

"Whatever," Juniper said, sitting back and opening her textbook again. "Just forget I said anything about it."

Cassie folded her arms over her chest defensively, feeling quite miffed at this argument. But Juniper was quick to anger, it was just part of her serious personality, and soon Cassie was feeling much calmer after she reminded herself this. She still didn't want to keep disturbing the studious Ravenclaw, so she decided to check on Ron as Molly had asked.

She found the twins again and was told which direction to go. What they didn't tell her, was that he was sharing a compartment with Harry freaking Potter. She went up to the door and slid it open, her stomach rolling over itself when she saw that the Boy Who Lived was looking at her in curiosity.

"Hey, Ron," she said, trying to sound as nonchalant as she could. "Just wanted to see how your train ride was going." She didn't want to tell him that Molly had asked her to look after him, or he'd be downright embarrassed.

"It's going great, Cass! Hey, this is Harry Potter!"

Cassie was slightly surprised that Ron hadn't put two and two together that this introduction might make her feel uncomfortable, but as she plastered a fake smile on her face yet again while she said hello to the Potter boy, she reminded herself that Ron was eleven, that he didn't understand the complexity of her anxiety regarding this stuff. As she told Harry her name, she was relieved to see that he didn't seem to know who she was even in the slightest, so she calmed a bit as she chatted with them about the sorting ceremony and which houses they might be put in.

"If you need anything, come find me, and not just the train ride. I mean at school, too," she told Ron before leaving, and she felt slightly better as she walked away. But seconds later, the memory of Neville's green face when he realized who she was flashed through her mind, and once again she was dreading the moment when Harry looked at her like that, too.


	3. The Last First Day

As everyone had anticipated, the Sorting Ceremony this year was full of extra excitement with having Harry Potter there. Even the fellow Slytherins around Cassie were murmuring and whispering, trying to guess which house he would be placed in. Some were excited at the thought of having him in their house, while others found the idea atrocious. Of course, attitudes were greatly influenced by how the students' families spoke of the Potter boy at home. If they were anything like Lucius, they were cautioning their children not to express an open dislike for the boy, in case it made other people suspicious of their loyalties. But Cassie had also overheard her uncle telling Draco that there was always the possibility that the reason Harry was responsible for the Dark Lord's downfall was that he had the potential to become an even greater dark wizard. If that were the case, then Draco should become his ally. Lucius' antics sometimes made Cassie feel sick to think about.

Cassie mainly kept to herself when she was around other Slytherins, and for many of the same reasons, as there were only two ways that her housemates treated her. Some of them were extra nice to her, almost to the point of groveling, to stay on her good side; it was no coincidence that most of these students had come from families containing Death Eaters and had been encouraged to kiss her butt in case she decided to follow in her father's footsteps. On the other end of the spectrum, others treated her like she was a bug that needed squashing. She figured they viewed her as someone who was throwing away her potential and betraying her blood status by associating with students of all backgrounds. Some of them openly told her what an atrocity she was by dating a blood traitor, and she went through a few rough weeks in her fifth year before things settled down. Of course, that was only after she decided to dole out a few curses that the professors couldn't prove were performed by her, but the tormenting ended swiftly after that.

Of course, not all of the Slytherins were overly concerned with who she was and treated her like any other student. But Cassie had dealt with enough bullshit from the majority that she rather disliked associating with the lot of them, choosing to make friends from other houses. It was why part of her wished that Draco would be put into any other house besides Slytherin, so he could have better influences during his schooling, but alas, he was sorted into her house within a few seconds of the hat being placed on his head.

"We got Malfoy!" she heard someone cheer further down the table, and she sighed.

"Yes, big surprise there," she muttered to herself. She was satisfied that at least he didn't seek her out as he came down to the table to find a seat.

Potter was sorted into Gryffindor, along with Ron, and Cassie was happy with those results. The rest of the ceremony and feast were rather unremarkable for her, as she spent most of her time eating and silently watching other students. It was only when her eyes traveled up to the High Table and her gaze landed on Snape did she feel the tiniest bit of excitement. The last few times she had seen the Potions Master over the summer, she had gotten butterflies in her stomach, too. It was a confusing feeling for her, but she was no dummy when it came to knowing when she had a crush on someone. But for the time being, she just wanted to ignore it until it went away. After all, he was her professor, her Head of House, and her...Snape. Snape was not a romantic entity.

As these thoughts went through her head, she realized she had been staring at him the entire time. At some point, he had realized it, because now he was staring back at her with a less than amused look. She gave him a small smile and looked down at her food. Had she not been feeling so sheepish about having been caught gawking at the Potions Master, she might have noticed that the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor currently had his eyes locked on her.

Her intentions for the evening were to fetch the cauldron she owed Snape and bring it to his classroom, in case he needed it for classes that were starting in the morning. Besides, it gave her a reason not to have to hang out in the Slytherin common room, and she didn't feel like going to the library before classes even started. So after making her way to the dungeons, through the common room full of students, and into her dormitory to fetch it, she immediately placed a charm on it so it would float beside her and started to make her way back out to the corridor.

"Where do you think you're headed already, Black?" Harrison Babbs, one of the seventh year prefects asked, going to stand right in her path. She knew Babbs didn't care where students were during the night, as he was one to abuse his increased privileges to meet girls in the corridors to fool around. He was looking at her with a sly grin spreading across his tan face, and Cassie guessed that the goblet in his hand was already filled with fire whiskey that the older students always liked to smuggle into the castle.

"Not your concern," she said, her wand still in her hand from charming the cauldron, and she shifted it in her fingers, itching to use it.

"Of course it's my concern, Black," he said, taking a sip from the goblet. Cassie could smell the whiskey on his breath now. "How about this: you give me a kiss, and I won't tell." Cassie scrunched up her nose in disgust. "What, it's not like you have that Weasley boy here to screw anymore, do you? Wouldn't want you to feel lonesome!"

The students around them that were listening started to guffaw at his words, and Cassie rolled her eyes. "Or what?"

"Or...I'll tell Professor Snape," he ventured, not looking as confident in his little performance anymore.

"Okay, go for it," Cassie said, and she stepped around him, exiting the common room and heading down the hall towards the potions classroom. Babbs started to look a bit panicked that she wasn't playing along, following a few steps behind her, and then suddenly, a tall figure with flowing black robes appeared from around the corner, having just left the Great Hall himself.

"Babbs, Black," he drawled in his deep voice, cocking his eyebrow and obviously wondering what the two of them were doing.

"Well, Harrison, here he is, why don't you tell him?" Cassie said sweetly. Babbs opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out, and Snape looked more annoyed by the second.

"Babbs, spit it out, or...you've been drinking, haven't you?" he said, his dark eyes flashing dangerously. Cassie stifled her laughter as she continued down the hallway, as the cocky prefect tried to deny Snape's accusation even though he could smell the booze. She entered the classroom alone, not needing to see the rest of the interaction to know that Babbs was in for at least one detention already.

"I've got your replacement cauldron," Cassie said as she heard Snape enter the classroom behind her not a minute later. She had set it down and was now seated at one of the front row desks.

"Good. Now go, I'm busy," he replied curtly, walking around his desk and taking a seat.

"Wow, nice to see you too, Severus," she said sarcastically, although she wasn't offended, nor surprised at all by his rudeness.

"The school year has started, it's 'Professor Snape'," he replied coldly, starting to scribble on a stack of papers.

"Doesn't start till tomorrow," Cassie replied, resting her chin on her hand. "Speaking of which, what the hell are you even working on? It's not like you have papers to grade."

"Lesson plans."

"Lesson plans? Like you don't have every day of the school year memorized by now?" she challenged lightheartedly.

Snape slammed down the quill he was writing with, finally looking up at her, his black eyes shooting daggers at her. " _Maybe_ I'm just _pretending_ to be busy so you'll leave me alone," he hissed, continuing to glare, and Cassie resisted to urge to smile at him. She was used to all of his moods, which only consisted of annoyed and angry, and was not at all intimidated by his behavior. He knew it, which usually aggravated him even more.

"Severus, you're usually crabby before term starts, but this is a new level," she mused, and he let out a growl of frustration as he stood up behind his desk. "What's going on?"

"Nothing."

"It's not nothing," she countered, remaining seated at the desk, Snape now starting to pace the classroom.

"What, you don't have the Weasley Quidditch star to entertain you, so now I get the pleasure?" he sneered, and Cassie calmly folded her hands on the desk, her blue eyes following him as he continued to prowl around the room. This jab got to her a little, but she didn't want to show that he was getting to her. That was his ploy, to anger her, so she would leave and he could stew in his embitterment alone as he preferred.

"We both know I still made time to come here and annoy you when I was dating Charlie," she replied coyly. It was weird now, referring to her teenage ex-boyfriend to him when he made her heart flutter the way it was right now...she shook her head slightly, trying to shake those thoughts out of her head. She couldn't acknowledge those feelings. They were foreign, weird, and she was afraid somehow he'd know just by looking at her. "It's Harry Potter, isn't it?"

"What?" he barked, stopped and leaning forward to place his hands on his desk, his pale face framed by that dark curtain of hair as glowered at her.

"Don't play dumb, Severus, I know how much you hated his dad. It must be stirring up memories," Cassie ventured.

"You have no idea what you're talking about!"

Cassie ignored the outburst, knowing she was probably right, knowing it was best not to argue at this point. "It's not been easy for me, either. I keep imagining what it's going to be like when he realizes who I am." Her confession seemed to pull Snape out of his head for a moment because his face softened just a bit as he looked at her. "I met him on the train today by accident, but he had no clue. But it's just a matter of time."

"I've told you, you can't feel guilty for something you had nothing to do with," he replied, his voice quiet now as he spoke to her.

"You can tell me again and again. It doesn't change the fact that I do," she said, sighing. "I met Neville Longbottom today. You should have seen his face when I told him my name - "

"Cassie," Snape said sharply, now taking a seat back at his desk again. "You are not your father or your mother. You can't let their actions affect you like this." It was something he'd told her again and again over the years, maybe not the same words, but the same idea nonetheless. Suddenly, Cassie was feeling weary, and she couldn't handle hearing it again right then.

"Okay. Fine."

They were silent for a few moments, sitting at their respective desks. Snape was the first one to break the silence.

"Would you like some tea?" he asked. It was something that they did together quite often, drinking tea and reading in near silence when they just needed each other's company.

Now that Cassie was calm again, her heart twittered as the sound of his deep voice hit her ears.

"Yes, please."

The next morning while Cassie got ready for her classes, she couldn't help but feel a bit nervous, and for a few reasons. She was nervous to run into Harry or Neville again, which she knew was a bit ridiculous, considering they'd be eating in the Great Hall at the same time, and she knew at some point they'd run into each other in the halls. But then she realized that Ron was in the same dormitory as them and that it would only be a matter of time before the truth came out.

As she pulled her long, black locks into a ponytail, she internally scolded herself. She was an emotional mess over the opinions of two first-years. She couldn't let it ruin her last first day. She was stronger than this.

She was also nervous about her situation with Snape. She had stayed in the classroom with him, having a harmonious, organic chat once they had both calmed down, and hadn't returned to her dormitory until half-past eleven. That wasn't anything out of the ordinary, not even the bombardment of questions from her dorm mates about her whereabouts. It was the dreams she had after that concerned her. As far as she could remember, he was in every single minute of them, and they were not platonic.

She didn't have Potions until Wednesday, so for the time being she had to busy herself with her classes and studying. As she made her way to the Great Hall for breakfast, she made a mental note not to look up at the High Table, for fear of looking at him and that the sight of him would somehow completely derail her day. For the most part, she was successful, even forcing herself to make small talk with the students sitting near her for distraction.

Her first class of the day was Transfiguration with the Gryffindors. It was a subject she had always enjoyed and excelled at, and she and Professor McGonagall had always enjoyed a pleasant relationship. She was seated next to another Slytherin, excited to start the more advanced lessons that were reserved only for NEWT level seventh-years when she heard a rather unpleasant voice trying to get her attention by hissing, ' _Black! Hey, Black!'_

Cassie turned to her left, then her right, and finally realized that the offending noise was coming from behind her. Not to her surprise, it was Fiona Jenour, a seventh year Gryffindor who also happened to be Head Girl this year.

" _What_?" Cassie hissed back, mocking Jenour's strained whisper, as McGonagall wasn't even in the room yet.

The girls surrounding Jenour were covering their mouths with their hands, obviously trying to cover up the fact that they were giggling, although they were rather unsuccessful.

"I hear Charlie Weasley's open for business!" Jenour said, still trying to keep her voice quiet, but unable to keep it at a whisper any longer.

"Oh, yes," Cassie said, trying to look as serious as she possibly could. "Didn't you hear? He dumped me because he's so in love with you. You'll be getting a letter from him confessing his undying love any day, I'd expect."

The Head Girl and her friends erupted into frantic whispers then, as obviously Cassie's sarcasm had confused them. She knew that Jenour had been head over heels for Charlie ever since he'd become Quidditch captain and had been irate that a Slytherin who had no interest in the sport had been dating him. They were still discussing the matter when McGonagall strode in, resulting in her having to shush her classroom full of seventh years.

The lesson went well, as the students learned how to transform pebbles into tall, leafy palm trees. Then it was off to the first Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson of the term. Professor Quirrell proved to be a timid lecturer with a lot of book knowledge but seemed rather hesitant to perform any spells, and Cassie came to an early conclusion that this would just be another ineffective year in the class, much like the majority of the other years in that subject. As she was packing up her textbook, parchment, and wand, she was surprised to be approached by the rather demure man.

"C-c-cassiopeia B-b-black?" he asked, and Cassie looked up at him with a slightly raised eyebrow, as he had taken attendance at the beginning of the lesson, not to mention that he had called on her a few times during the lecture, and should probably know who she was already.

"Yes, that's me," she said, trying her best to sound respectful as she zipped up her satchel.

"F-f-forgive me," he said, appearing to try to make eye contact, but not able to do so for more than a second. "B-b-ut rumor h=has it, that y-y-you're planning on b-b-b-being an a-" he stopped for a second, taking a deep breath. "An a-"

"An Auror, yes," Cassie finished for him gently, giving him a reassuring smile.

"Oh," he said, returning her smile, finally able to make eye contact. He didn't speak for a few seconds.

"Is that all?" she asked, and he chuckled nervously.

"I j-j-ust wanted t-t-to t-t-tell you," he said, "If you ever n-n-need a-a-anything, p-p-please ask."

"Oh, thank you, professor. I'll probably take you up on that," Cassie said, and she meant it at the time, because who knew what kind of recommendations she might need when applying for Auror training. She turned to leave the classroom when Quirrell started to speak again.

"N-n-not what we'd ex-expect from you, eh?" he said, and Cassie turned to stare at him for a moment, feeling a bit caught off guard by the comment. Suddenly, her guard was up with him, as she'd had her fair share of new professors having ulterior motives with her over the years.

The smile on her face faded, and she made a point to look him right in the eye when she spoke next. "I think it's exactly what one would expect." She turned and left without another word, gritting her teeth as she made her way to the Charms classroom.

The rest of her day was rather uneventful, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something was up with Quirrell. The thought stayed with her into her free period when she tried to get a start on her homework, and into her meals and evening when she was trying to get some work done while in the common room. She usually liked to study in the library so she could meet up with June and Al, but she was making a point to check up on Draco, even though part of her didn't care.

He came into the common room with Crabbe and Goyle in tow, talking animatedly about his day, and Cassie hoped he wasn't excited because he had hexed some poor student.

"Draco," she said from her chair, gesturing for him to come over. He did, almost enthusiastically, as she knew he was wanting the other Slytherins to know that they were related and on friendly terms. "How was your day?"

He launched into stories about his classes, and so far everything sounded relatively innocent to Cassie. Then, he started to recount how he intentionally sabotaged one of the Ravenclaw girls during Charms, and Cassie was about to berate him when they were interrupted.

"Excuse me, Miss Black?" It was one of the newly minted fifth-year prefects, a short boy by the name of Ricardo. "I'm sorry, but I have a message for you to go to the Headmaster's office." It didn't matter how old you were, because everyone within earshot starting going, 'Oooooh!' As Cassie packed up her books.

"Don't get into any more trouble," she said quietly to Draco, and he smirked at her, not at all convincing her that those were his intentions.

"Funny, coming from someone called to Dumbledore's," he retorted, and she sighed as she went to her dorm to drop off her books before heading to the Headmaster's office.

It was a place she had been to many times over her school career, sometimes for the hexes she cast on other students, sometimes for the things done to her. But for the first time, she walked there not having any clue why she was being summoned to go there. When she got to the door, it swung open before she could even get the chance to knock, and she was surprised to see Snape seated in front of Dumbledore's desk.

"Miss Black," Dumbledore greeted warmly, gesturing towards the empty chair next to him. "Please, have a seat."

Cassie's heart began to race as what she knew was an irrational thought was going through her mind...did they know about her little feelings towards her Head of House? Were they going to tell her to quash them, that they were inappropriate? Did they trouble themselves with such things? Surely, students had feelings for professors before, this couldn't be the first time...

All these thoughts were running through her head as she walked towards the chair and sat, and she stayed silent as she waited for one of the wizards to speak first.

"I trust your first day of classes went alright?" Dumbledore asked kindly, and Cassie nodded, trying to find her voice.

"Yes, they did. Although..." she started, wondering if this was the time to bring up Quirrell, or if maybe she was jumping the gun. Lord knows she had been burned in the past when it came to trusting new professors.

"Yes?" Snape questioned, and his voice made her stomach completely flip over. She took a deep breath before continuing.

"I had a kind of weird interaction with Professor Quirrell," she said quickly, feeling kind of stupid that she was saying this in front of the Headmaster, and not waiting to do it until she was alone with Snape. "He pulled me aside after class, offered me extra help if I needed it."

"Not anything malicious sounding," Dumbledore mused, giving her a small smile.

"No, not that, I agree with you, Headmaster," she said. "But he commented that I'd like to be an Auror, and then he said...he said, 'Not what we'd expect from you.'" She was wringing her hands in her lap. "With stuttering and the like, of course," she added.

She saw the wizards exchange glances, but she didn't know what they meant. "I'm sorry, I know it's probably me being paranoid, but I thought it would be best to say something in case...something happens."

"Miss Black, don't ever feel like you can't tell your teachers something like this. We know your history, and why you have the right to be suspicious," Dumbledore said, and Cassie nodded, not feeling nearly as stupid. "Now, the reason that I asked you to come here, and after such a busy day. I understand that you've expressed interest in tutoring first years this year."

Cassie nodded. She glanced at Snape, whose features were currently expressionless. "Yes, I have."

"On what subjects?" Dumbledore asked, resting his chin on his folded hands as he looked at her.

Cassie shrugged. "Anything, really." She heard Snape scoff a bit, and she broke into a smile. "Well, I know I don't exactly excel at everything, but I'd like to think that I can at least handle first-year level of all the subjects." She knew Snape was picturing the melted cauldron from last year, and she almost started laughing.

"I do not doubt that you can, that's not the issue," Dumbledore said. "What I want to inquire is, how you're handling your feelings of having the new batch of first year students here."

Cassie blinked a few times, not knowing what he meant at first. "You mean, specific first years?"

"Yes, that is what I mean."

Cassie shrugged, now feeling like she was being tested, that she could give a very wrong answer. "I mean, I'm not super thrilled to have Draco here, because he's an entitled little sh - ...thing. But other than that..."

"Yes, I hear he is an entitled little shit," Dumbledore said, and Cassie's eyes grew wide at his words. "But I'd like to know how you feel about Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom."

"I'm, uh..." she started, not feeling exactly comfortable having the same conversation she had had with Snape the night before. "I guess I'm worried how they're going to react to me. Who I am."

Dumbledore nodded slowly. "I know this is a sensitive topic, Miss Black. So you don't have any resentment towards either boy?"

"Resentment?" Cassie asked, and then she started to realize what he was getting at. "Are you asking me if I'm planning on getting revenge on them?"

"Not intentionally, no. But sometimes, when you're upset, Miss Black, you can lose control of your power."

"I don't harbor any resentment towards them, Headmaster. I feel guilty for what my father and mother did to _them_. But I don't blame them, or their families, for my lack of one!" She could hear her voice rising, and her fists were clenched as she spoke.

"Okay, Miss Black, okay," Dumbledore said, trying his best to soothe her, but she felt her blood begin to boil at the notion that this meeting was even happening.

"No, Headmaster, it's not okay. What do I have to do to prove that I'm not going to just, flip a switch and turn into my parents?" she said, nearly shouting now, and she could feel the pain of her fingernails digging into her palms as she clenched her hands harder. "I mean, I was _kidnapped_ by wannabe Death Eaters when I was twelve and offered an entire army of followers and I didn't accept that! What more can I do?" A low rumble started to grow in the office, and knickknacks that weren't very heavy began to clatter, her anger setting off a destructive power that was hard for her to control.

"As I am well aware, Cassiopeia, as I killed their leader to protect you," Dumbledore said sternly, his blue eyes daring her to challenge him further.

"Cassie, _calm down!"_ Snape commanded, but Cassie barely heard him.

She wanted to scream, ' _Protect me? Or remove my temptation?'_ But even in her enraged state, she knew that was taking it too far. She was taking deep breaths, trying to calm herself, but the objects around Dumbledore's office continued to rattle. Finally, when Snape stood behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders, the objects stood still, and the rumbling silenced. She was grateful that Snape had intervened because she would have felt awful if she had broken Dumbledore's things in what was essentially a tantrum.

"I'm so sorry, Headmaster," she said quietly, doing her best to look him in the eye when she said it even though that was the last thing she wanted to do. "I didn't mean to react that way, it's just - "

"Don't apologize, Miss Black," Dumbledore interjected, and she saw tears glimmering in his eyes. "I know it's unfair. We just have to do what we can to protect everyone."

He dismissed her after that, insisting that Snape accompany her back down to the dungeons. They were silent as they went, and Cassie was grateful yet again when Snape chased off a pestering Peeves, something that she was not willing to deal with at the moment.

Completely bypassing the Slytherin common room, Snape didn't protest when Cassie led them to the classroom and then into his office. Before either one could speak, she had wrapped her arms around his waist and was sobbing into his black-clad torso. She knew without seeing him that he was immensely uncomfortable, but she didn't care right then. After a minute or so, he moved his arm that had been hanging stiffly by his side to pat her lightly on the back, and she started to laugh.

"Severus, I am so sorry," she said, her voice muffled as she spoke into his robes. She pulled away, sniffling and wiping away tears.

He looked at her apprehensively for a few moments before asking, "Tea?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovely readers, just wanting to let you know that I will not be able to update until Monday or Tuesday, as I will be working twelve hour shifts starting tomorrow/Friday. I intend for this to be a long, long story, with hopefully a new chapter posted at least once or twice a week.  
> Thanks for reading. :)


	4. Focus

A pair of hands were on her.

They were pale and large, and familiar-looking; Cassie instantly recognized them as the same hands she had observed make an endless number of potions over the years. But instead of chopping, or stirring, or even paging through a book, they were on her bare flesh. Their owner was making graceful, calculated movements as the appendages made their way from her collarbone to her shoulders, down her arms. She shuddered under their expert caresses, and soon she found herself squirming as long, slender, fingers began to dance their way across her belly, her chest now heaving from the anticipation of where they could be going next.

In her dreaming state, she slowly began to wonder why on earth she didn't have a single piece of clothing on, while the blurry figure above her that was responsible for all of these tantalizing sensations seemed to be fully covered in black robes. At the moment, however, the realization of the blatant difference didn't dampen the mood.

For a few more blissful moments, the hands continued their fluid motions on her fevered flesh, and Cassie could feel something heavenly building inside of her. But, just as quickly as this dream came on, the mood swiftly began to change, as if someone had entered her psyche and was now commandeering the direction of it. The hands that were touching her were suddenly cold, and Cassie gasped in shock as one harshly gripped a wrist while the other went to her throat. Wide-eyed, she tried to get a better look at her assailant, but all she could make out was an obscure shape of a person with no distinguishable features of a face or hair.

"Get off me!" she growled, and the grip on her neck tightened as she struggled.

"Foolish girl," a cold, high voice snarled back. Then, some of Cassie's memories, old and new alike, began to flash around the two of them, like someone was pulling them forward and rifling through them like a scrapbook. It was agonizing, and Cassie was screaming when she woke up that morning, startling the other girls in her dormitory and starting them off to an early day as well.

When she was fully awake, she couldn't remember the nightmarish end to her dream. All she could recall was the figure in the black robes touching her and how good it made her feel. She made a silent promise to herself not to look at the High Table at breakfast this morning, for fear of losing her day's focus if she laid eyes on the Head of Slytherin. She was immensely proud of herself when she was able to follow through with it, giving herself a mental pat on the back as she left the Great Hall, having not glanced up at Snape once.

Her first class of the day was a rather uneventful double Herbology lesson, which in Cassie's book meant it was a rather good one. Afterward, she had received a message from Madam Pince to go to the library, so she headed there to get set up for her tutoring sessions. At first, her thoughts as she walked were on what topics the younger students might be coming to her would be about this first week. But once she realized she was looking around, hoping to catch a glimpse of a tall, black-haired figure in the crowd as moved about the castle, her feelings of self-control were quickly dashed. Cassie knew she was going to be in trouble. Even the very thought of him had her stomach in knots now. Her cheeks would flush when she would remember her recent dreams or fantasies of him.

She felt like every time they were in the same room, he would somehow know, and not for lack of logical reason, as Cassie was well aware that Snape was more than capable of reading minds. Fortunately for her, she was naturally gifted in the area of Occlumency, in addition to having been trained by Snape. It had been a necessary thing for her to learn at an early age, having been pursued multiple times in her young life by prospective dark wizards and hopeful followers. Together, she and the Potions Master had also discovered that she had inherited the ease of Legilimency from Lord Voldemort, but it had horrified her, as she had seen him use it as a form of torture on people countless occasions. She had vowed never to use it, knowing that it could be a slippery slope and a gross misuse of her powers.

After not seeing Snape on her short journey to the library, Cassie attempted to refocus her thoughts and approached Madam Pince, who was looking as severe as ever.

"Miss Black, follow me if you'd please," she said without any sort of friendly exchange first, and Cassie obliged. She was pointed towards a small room off to one side of the library that was equipped with two large desks facing one another, six small desks in between them and two cauldrons. "You may have your choice of a desk. Your hours will be Mondays and Wednesdays, from 7 pm to 9:30 pm. You may switch or take hours from other tutors, pending approval from myself or your Heads of Houses, of course."

"Alright," Cassie said, trying not to grimace at the formality of it all. She wanted to help younger students, not perform mandatory community service. "Do I have another tutor on with me?"

The librarian pursed her lips as if inconvenienced by such an obtuse question and went to the classroom door to point out a piece of paper that was tacked there. Cassie stepped up to it to find her name, along with the name next to it: Theodore Quartermaine, a seventh-year Hufflepuff. She didn't know him very well, but from what she knew of him, he was kind and friendly to other students, and as far as she knew, he didn't think of her as the antichrist.

"You will report here tonight after dinner for orientation," Madam Pince said.

"Orientation?" Cassie asked, surprised that there was such a thing, but the older witch had suddenly scurried off, feeling the need to fuss after a student that was carrying a stack of books so high they were about to drop them. Cassie would have used a charm to straighten the stack in a heartbeat if the librarian wasn't so adamant that magic not be used near her precious texts.

Then it was lunch. She was able to keep her mind focused on eating and not looking at the High Table by going over that morning's Herbology lesson and anticipating what they might be doing in Charms that afternoon. She had to keep on task this year and couldn't afford a huge distraction. Her NEWTs were this year, and she had to do well so she would be accepted into Auror training. Her marks were usually decent, but not for lack of effort in some areas.

Potions, especially Potions. That damn subject had always given her grief, and as Professor Snape had reminded her time and again over the years: ' _You do well in certain subjects because of raw talent, not because you have brains. All in all, you really are dense. And you have problems keeping focus, staying on task. You need excitement or grow bored very easily, it is an irksome trait that needs to be trained out of you!'_

Even as Cassie was replaying Snape's insults in her head, she was focusing more on the timbre of his voice and the way it sent shivers up her spine rather than the malice of his message. She shook her head slightly when she realized what she was doing, trying to get him out of her head. The girl next to her gave her a strange look as she got up to leave.

"Damnit," she muttered under her breath and was going to leave herself, when a voice behind her made her jump.

"Miss Black," the voice of the Potions Master reached her ears, and Cassie slowly turned to find him standing there. He was so close that he had to step back to allow her to stand fully and start walking with him.

"Hello, Sev - Professor," she said, taking a shaky breath.

"I'd like to speak with you privately."

"Alright."

"Not now. When you are free, Miss Black?"

Cassie gulped. Images of last night's dream were rushing forward in her mind. "I have class until dinner, then orientation for tutoring right after." They had just exited the Great Hall. "Can't we just talk now?" She didn't want to have to anticipate seeing him later. She wouldn't learn a thing in class today.

"It's not something to discuss in a hallway," he said, and she could tell by the stern look on his face and the crease deepening between his eyebrows that she wouldn't win this one. Not that she ever really won their arguments. "Come to my office after dinner."

Something struck a nerve within her, and before she could stop them, the words came out of her mouth. "I have an appointment to keep, Professor. _You_ come to the _library_."

One of his eyebrows raised sharply, and she knew she had done it. "How about I put you in detention, Miss Black, and you can forget about your little tutoring endeavors? Will that teach you some respect?" His voice had raised, and students that were walking out of the Great Hall were starting to stare. Had any one of the bystanders been told that he had been comforting the young witch the night before, albeit rather unwillingly, they never would have believed it, witnessing the exchange now that seemed so typical between the professor and his students. He had a soft spot for Cassie, and might even admit to some sort of friendship with her, but hated being disrespected in front of the student population.

He expected her to keep at it and snarl something back at him, as it was typical for her to not back down at this point. When she didn't, he knew at this point he might have taken it a little too far. But he'd never say it.

"If that's what you choose, Professor Snape," Cassie said quietly. He stayed silent for a few seconds before responding.

"My office after dinner. I won't keep you long."

So Cassie went about the rest of her day knowing she would have to go to Snape's office again, and her mind kept drifting to picturing him in it. His height, his scent, his voice, his mannerisms, all of it threatened to distract her as she practiced the advanced skills she had waited seven years to learn while at Hogwarts. She still did quite well in her Charms lesson, as anything involving wand magic came quite naturally to her and rarely needed to be shown to her more than once before she mastered it. Nonetheless, there were facts and text she knew she had to memorize for the end of year tests and the very idea of failing them was making her quite anxious for being only her second day of classes.

She knew she needed to calm down. Not having Charlie or Tonks there with her was making everything seem so much worse. After making a mental note to write her cousin a letter when she had the time in the next couple of days, she felt a bit better, and then she found herself in Arithmancy, having a hard time paying attention to the lecture and the charts that came after. She felt lost, lonely.

Dinner was a short ordeal, as she didn't find herself to be very hungry. This time, she specifically looked up at the High Table to see if Snape looked like he was going to be done eating soon. She made eye contact with him and he nodded slightly to indicate that he saw her, and she stood up. Then her eyes were drawn over to Quirrell, who was staring at her. As soon as she focused on him, he looked away.

"Quirrell was staring at me," Cassie muttered to Snape quietly when he met up with her. She had waited for him at the staircase to the dungeons, and they started to descend together.

"I noticed," he replied curtly.

"Thoughts?"

He didn't reply at first, as they were passing a group of third years in the hallway. Snape muttered greetings to them as they passed, and didn't speak until they were a safe distance away. "Something is going on."

"What?"

"The usual. Fear. Admiration. Spying for the Ministry."

"That's a new one," Cassie said, smirking as they entered his office. Images of the two of them pushed up against his desk flashed in her mind and she immediately pushed them aside, looking intently at some sort of gross pickled ingredient on a shelf instead.

"No it's not," Snape replied, and she laughed a bit.

"Okay, not new. Just haven't had that happen for a while." Fudge had always been a bit wary of Cassie, especially the older she got, and nothing he did to keep tabs on her really ever surprised her. "Okay, Severus, I've got a schedule to keep. What did you want to talk about?"

"First and foremost, do _not_ speak that way to me in front of other students again," he growled dangerously, and his black eyes glared with so much intensity that she almost looked away, but she didn't. Now alone with him, she wouldn't dare back down from one of his challenges.

"Yes, sir," she said dryly and must have had a hard time telling if she was being sarcastic or not, because he blinked a few times before continuing.

"Second, the reason I wanted to speak with you is that your dorm mates have informed me of your habitual screaming in your sleep - "

"Habitual? It's the second day of classes!" she exclaimed, and he leaned forward on his desk, his lip curling as he glowered at her.

"Do not interrupt me."

"Those bitches," she muttered under her breath, and then she looked up at him again. "Sorry."

"Is something going on?" he asked, and she detected the ever-so-slight softening of his tone as he spoke to her. It made her heart all-a-twitter, the way his expression subtlety changed when he was concerned but trying to reign it in.

"No," she lied. What was she supposed to say, that she was having sex dreams, and he was the reoccurring star? She didn't even want to begin to imagine his reaction to that.

He was looking at her exactly the way he looked at her when he didn't believe her, and they both knew it. "It's important that you come to me if something is going on."

"I've been telling you what's been going on," she said somewhat sincerely. "When have I ever not?"

He didn't respond to her then and folded his long arms over his chest as he watched her. She felt like he was staring right through her.

Orientation to tutoring consisted of a know-it-all sixth year Ravenclaw telling Cassie what was expected of her, what was considered cheating and doing the homework for the students, and under what rare circumstances the students could earn extra credit for their courses. The majority of it was common sense to Cassie, and within twenty minutes she was headed back into the main part of the library to start her own mountain of homework. She was thrilled to find Juniper, Alpit and a few other students she was acquainted with, even if they were mainly silent as they worked at the same table. What bothered her was when towards the end of the evening she felt the faintest, slight tug as if someone were trying to peek under the fabric of her mind. She was experienced in feeling someone trying to enter her consciousness, and this was like a minuscule percentage of it, almost as if she were imagining it. It stopped as soon as she looked up and started to look around the mostly deserted library, and she decided that she must have been overtired and hallucinated it. She went back to her dorm soon after.

The other witches in her dorm told her that her screaming woke them up again that morning, that she sounded like she was being tortured. All she remembered was Snape, and what she imagined his quarters were like, and a cushy fur rug near a crackling fireplace...

Today she had Potions. Between all of the seventh years, there were nine of them that had done well enough to advance to this class, and seven of the nine had worked their keisters off to be there. Cassie was grateful to have Juniper and Alpit there, but already she could tell that Juniper was sweating bullets.

"Relax, June," Cassie said quietly as the class unpacked their supplies and textbooks. "Snape's not even in here yet!"

Just then, he burst into the room with a sour look on his face and all the attention was on him. Cassie's insides flipped over several times, a confusing mix of lust and dreading the impending doom. 

"Wit-Sharpening Potion, from memory. If you screw up, you will start from scratch, as many times as needed. If you do not complete before class is up, you will copy the instructions, along with the entire textbook, on Saturday night in detention. Begin."

To say there was pressure was a huge understatement. One Hufflepuff was crying in the first twenty minutes, having to restart once already. In the first hour, three others had to restart, and Snape had no problem going around the room and making the product of their efforts disappear with a simple wave of his wand. Ninety minutes in, and Alpit was nearly there, but his purple solution was off by being the slightest bit too light.

Alpit audibly groaned when Snape made his potion disappear, as he knew there was little chance he'd be able to get another batch done in the time they had left. Snape sentenced him to separate detention for it. Cassie opened her mouth to defend her classmate, and Snape must have noticed it, because he was suddenly right beside her, bending forward to breathe down her neck.

"Yes, Miss Black?" he drawled, allowing her to challenge his decision to bully Alpit.

She could feel his hot breath on her skin, and she closed her eyes for a moment, swallowing hard, making herself concentrate. She was almost there, she had to avoid detention.

"Nothing, Professor Snape."

He walked away without another word, satisfied with her compliance. She, along with five of the others, was able to complete the potion. The others were destined for a Saturday night with Snape. For a second, Cassie found herself wishing she was one of them, and she silently scolded herself.

"Miss Black, I'm rather surprised," Snape said to her as she packed up her things, and a few of the other students glanced up to listen to them banter. "Finally learned to pick up a textbook over the holiday, eh?"

Cassie's lips spread into a small smile, and she looked up at him before answering. "Yeah, finally learned how to read!" she said cheerily, and then walked out with an exaggerated spring in her step, earning a few muffled giggles from the stressed students as she went. She knew she probably aggravated Snape just then, but she was also just responding to his insult. But there was the tiniest, most desperate glimmer of hope in her that wondered if he was disappointed that she wouldn't be in his Saturday night detention, too.

As the day went on and her first tutoring session grew nearer, Cassie was wondering if the whole thing was just some horrible idea and if she should just quit while she was ahead. The school year was already proving to be a busy one with the homework load she had been given, and she had to make sure she was focusing on her studies. This would only take away from her time to study. But she reminded herself why she wanted to tutor in the first place; it was an opportunity to help younger students, and it was also a chance to put an extracurricular on her resume. She had not been chosen to be prefect because parents had written letters to the school requesting that she not be given that much power and influence. Some of the professors had jumped to her defense, but Cassie had chosen not to fight it and just stay under the radar.

For similar reasons, she had chosen not to become an Animagi; if she had chosen to start the process at Hogwarts, she would have had to register with the Ministry, and she could foresee what would happen then. Whatever animal she might have decided on, the public would have had access to the information and would have panicked every time there was a squirrel or a chicken near an attack or natural disaster and they would have pointed fingers at her. McGonagall had been sorely disappointed in Cassie's decision not to even consider it but had understood the desire to reduce the fear from the magical community.

She finished her day of classes, had her meals, started some homework and then it was time to head to the library. She wondered if Harry Potter would be seeking homework help tonight, and hoped that if it were the case, that they could avoid the topic of her parents for the time being.

When she entered the little classroom, Theodore was already there and set up at his chosen desk. He greeted her with a warm smile.

"'Ello, Cassiopeia," he said, and Cassie winced.

"Cassie," she corrected. "Hello, Theodore. Is this your first night, too?"

"Sure is. Can't be much too it, I gather," he said. And he seemed right. Students started to slowly file in, mainly first and second years, wanting help on essays and to be shown the correct ways to use their wands on certain spells. Not surprising to Cassie, the majority of them tended to go to Theodore over her, and she figured it was because they knew who she was. For a solid half-hour, she found herself sitting alone, until the bushy-haired girl from the train, Hermione Granger, and Neville Longbottom walked in. Neville's face instantly went green again when he saw her, and she saw Hermione whisper hurriedly in his ear. There was a line of four students waiting in front of Theodore, and finally, Neville seemed to agree with what Hermione was saying, because they approached Cassie's desk.

"Hello Hermione, Neville," Cassie greeted them. "What can I do for you?"

"You know our names?" Neville choked out in disbelief.

"Well, yeah," Cassie said slowly, trying not to laugh. "We met on the train, and I saw you two get sorted, and we kind of go to the same school, so..."

"I just thought, with being a seventh year and all," Neville offered as an explanation, and Hermione nudged him.

"Anyway, we'd just thought we'd get some help on Charms," Hermione said. Cassie waited for her to explain further, but the first year started to fire questions at her instead, ' _What spell is used to unlock doors?' 'How would you move your want to extinguish a_ _flame?'._ Finally, after answering about five of these in rapid-fire questions in succession, Cassie put up her hand.

"Wait, why am I being quizzed?" she asked Hermione with a raised eyebrow.

"I just wanted to see if you knew them," Hermione answered. Cassie wondered if she had just been passed the test for being good enough to 'tutor' the Gryffindor.

"Well, I'm not the one learning this stuff, you are," Cassie replied. "So again, I ask, what can I do for you?" It turned out that Hermione just wanted to be asked a series of questions she already knew the answers to, and Cassie was fine doing it for the bright witch. She paused only to check in with Neville, who was sitting at a desk and listening quietly, and he insisted he was learning just by doing this. Her session ended with the two of them, and Hermione thanked her profusely for her time, even though Cassie was sure that Hermione hadn't learned anything new. Neville looked her in the eye when he said good night to her, and Cassie felt pretty good when she headed towards the dungeons for the night.

That was, until, she felt that little tug on her mind again. It went away as soon as she whipped around to look for the culprit, just like last time.


	5. Suddenly Exposed

"You told me nothing was going on!" Snape said sharply, his arms folded neatly across his chest as he looked down his nose at Cassie.

"I was telling the truth!" she proclaimed, feeling that she was innocent in all this.

"Really?" he replied, his tone condescending and accusatory. "Then what reason would you have to come to me now, when I just had this conversation with you two days ago?"

"Severus, you really make it difficult for me to come to you with shit, you do realize that, don't you?" Cassie said, exasperated that she was being berated for merely entering his classroom and telling him they needed to revisit their conversation from Tuesday. It was only a few minutes before the first period was about to start, and although she was free for this first hour, she knew he'd have a classroom full of third years coming in soon.

The Potions Master let out an irked sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose at the same time. "I don't have time to debate your opinion of how personable I am. Tell me."

"Good, because that would take til the end of the week."

"On with it, Miss Black!" he said sharply, his words coming with an unsaid warning. Fighting the urge to keep teasing him, she filled him in on the last two nights, on how she felt the tiny tug on her mind, on how it had stopped both times when she had started to look around to see if anyone was concentrating on her. His hardened expression softened as his thoughts went beyond the drafty classroom, and Cassie found herself staring at him longingly as his black eyes trained on a spot behind her as he pondered this new information. When he spoke again, she was slightly startled and hoped he hadn't noticed her gawking at him.

"Did you wake up screaming this morning?" he asked quietly, looking towards the classroom door, They were still alone, but the students could be coming in at any second.

"Danika threw her shoe at me, so I'm guessing yes," Cassie replied dully. "Why?"

"It can't be a coincidence, the nightmares you're conveniently not remembering and whoever is trying to enter your mind," Snape said.

"Okay. So what do I do about it?" Cassie asked, but she dreaded his answer because she thought she knew what it was going to be. And she couldn't agree to it. It would be humiliating.

"You have to let me use Legilimency on you, Cassie," he said, his baritone voice going even quieter as he spoke. "Even if you can't remember the nightmares, I might be able to pull them forward." He glanced past her again, and Cassie turned around to see that two students had entered. "We'll discuss it further later. When are you free again?"

Cassie started to stumble over her words because now she didn't know what to say. "I - well, Professor, I'm busy, very busy," she said, and he raised an eyebrow at her. She could feel herself start to blush. "I have classes and eating, and studying," and then she was out the door. She didn't realize she was holding her breath until she reached the staircase that led out of the dungeons and into the Entry Hall, and then she let out a breath so harsh that she sounded like she was choking. Babbs, who was walking by with his arm slung over a blonde girl, looked at her with surprised concern.

"You alright, Black?"

"Yeah, sure," she said absently, and then picked a random direction and started walking. She had intended to study in the library until her next class, but now all she could think about was the fact that Snape wanted to delve into her mind and ransack her thoughts and memories. It was something intimate and uncomfortable, although it wasn't something completely foreign between the two of them, as he had had to do it on many occasions in the past for her Occlumency lessons. But now she was hiding something, and it wasn't something sinister or something that she would get into trouble for.

But it was awkward and raw and she couldn't bear the thought of having him learn of her feelings, only to have them unrequited. She assumed; no, _knew_ , that he wouldn't feel the same about her, and would throw them right back in her face. It would ruin their dynamic and their friendship, and right now, it was the only stable thing that she had at the school. It had to be protected.

Instead of going to the library, she made her way to the Astronomy tower. It was inhabited only by a fifth-year couple that was making out in a stairwell, and they unglued themselves and took off as soon as Cassie came into view. She sat on the stone floor and took in the view at the window for a few minutes before pulling a piece of parchment and quill out of her knapsack, and began to compose a letter to Tonks.

_Dora,_

_I hope this finds you well, and still with all remaining limbs._

_Hogwarts is the same, except Slytherin has added our 'dear' cousin, as we expected. I hear Hufflepuff has already quadrupled its house points in the first three days without you here getting into mischief, however._

_Tell those Aurors to save a spot for me. Let me know how things are going._

_Much love,_

_Cass_

She spent another half hour of solace in the tower, before heading to the owlery to send the letter to her cousin. Knowing it was likely that it would be weeks before Tonks had time to send a response, she watched the borrowed owl take off to deliver it, wondering how far it might have to fly before reaching its intended recipient. Tonks could be in Europe still, or on another continent training. No one outside of the Ministry was really privy to the information. Cassie wondered how her Aunt Andromeda was doing, not being able to be in constant contact with her only daughter, and decided she'd have to make time to send her a letter soon, too. But for now, it would have to wait, as it was time to head to class.

Being able to concentrate on her lessons was rather difficult on this gloomy Thursday, and not because flashes of the steamy Snape-centric dreams from the night before were popping up in her mind, although that was also not helping. What was preoccupying her mind was the fact that she was now trying to avoid him. Up until the evening, it seemed to work. She even decided not to be in the Great Hall for meals in hopes that she could avoid being in the same room with him altogether, choosing instead to stop by the kitchens and eat sandwiches while chatting with a few of the house-elves she had gotten acquainted with over the years. Once she was in the library studying with the usual duo of Alpit and Juniper, however, it was pretty easy to find her.

She was deep into studying Arithmancy when she felt a sharp tap on her shoulder. When she turned to see who it was, she was greeted by the sight of Draco, who was wearing a rather bored look on his face.

"What?" she whispered sharply, and he rolled his eyes at her.

"I have a note from Professor Snape," he said, the tone in his voice indicating that she should already know this information.

"I'm busy," she answered, turning back to her textbook, hoping that if she ignored him he and the note would disappear, and Juniper cleared her throat to indicate that they should shut up.

"I'm not a servant boy," Draco answered dully, throwing the piece of folded parchment in front of her on the desk. He walked away without another word, and Cassie was left to stare at the yellow paper, wondering if she should touch it.

"Well," Alpit said, looking at her expectantly. "Aren't you going to open it?"

Cassie shrugged and then pointed her head towards Madam Pince, who was starting to scowl at the table of delinquent whisperers. The subject was not brought up again, and she waited to unfold the offending paper once the trio had parted ways and was heading towards their respective house common rooms.

_'My office, now.'_ it read. The note had been delivered an hour ago. He was pissed off at this point, Cassie knew. She decided to head towards the Slytherin common room for the night and take her chances anyway. But the plan of avoiding her Head of House wasn't going to work.

"Black, Professor Snape wants to see you," Babbs said as she crossed the area in front of the fireplace. She didn't say anything and glanced up at the grandfather clock that stood near the bookcases. Half-past ten. It was late, he couldn't expect to see her now. "Black!" The prefect said as she continued towards her dorm, but she kept going.

Unfortunately for her, she shared a dormitory with another Slytherin prefect, Wladyslawa Laanstra, and she followed her. "Black!" she said, echoing Harrison Babbs.

"Yes, I heard you, Laanstra," Cassie said irritably, knowing that her strategy probably wasn't going to work.

"He seemed pretty adamant that you needed to go there. I'd really rather not have him come into the common room to fetch you, we'd have to hide all the _Play Witch_ copies, and fire whiskey and Amortentia around here in case he decides to do a surprise inspection - " she started, and Cassie held up her hand to silence her.

"I get it. God forbid all you heathens have to hide the banned paraphernalia around here and ruin the fun," she said, dropping her bag on her bed and heading towards the common room again. "Don't say I haven't done any of you any favors," she grumbled, and off she went to Snape's office.

As she expected, he was rather miffed that it had taken her this long to go there, choosing to look up from the papers he was grading and silently glare at her when she entered, rather than say anything right away.

"You wanted to see me, sir?" she said once she was standing right in front of his desk, hoping that her respectful way of addressing him would ease his displeasure just a tad.

He suddenly stopped writing and threw his quill across the room, standing up so quickly that his chair made a loud screeching noise as it was scraped across the floor, making Cassie flinch. "You disobey my requests, and then come in here with that blatant sarcasm?" he barked, and spit was hitting her in the face.

Cassie looked at him with wide eyes, knowing she had done it now, but she stood her ground, not moving from her spot in front of him. "I wasn't being sarcastic, I promise - "

"What are you being then, girl?!" he hissed, his lips curled in an angry sneer. "Difficult? Contemptuous? A waste of my time?"

"So I was busy," Cassie said, and she had a hard time keeping her voice even, as his hostile features were mere inches from her face, "I'm sorry. What more do you want me to say? I'm here!" He let out a growl as he swiftly turned away from her, and Cassie let out a deep breath.

"You _aren't_ telling me everything," he said, his back still to her, his voice silky and even now. To her, it was much more intimidating than when he was yelling. "And I ask you again: What is going on?"

"I've told you!" she said without missing a beat, and he let out another grunt of annoyance. The Head of Slytherin knew her well enough to know when she was trying to keep something from him, and she wasn't very good at it in the first place. Why she felt the need to keep a secret from him when he essentially knew everything about her, he couldn't fathom.

"Fine," he said, slowly turning around to face her, and his black eyes were glittering maliciously. He knew she was hiding something, and she was well aware that he was pretty confident in his skills to get it out of her. It made her want to knock him down a few pegs. "I will know soon enough."

"Know what?" she said, challenging him once again. When she had entered the room, she had intended to be submissive in an attempt to keep the peace. But when he was acting like a presumptuous asshole, she was never really able to stay calm.

"Cassie, I'm trying to _help_ you."

"There's nothing to help," she lied, and it was one of the rare moments that Severus Snape looked dumbfounded.

"Pardon me? Did you not inform me just this morning that you felt someone trying to _read_ your _mind?"_

"That's right. And I'm not about to just let someone do it again," Cassie replied defiantly.

"If someone is getting in, then you need to practice again - "

"I can practice on my own."

"What about the nightmares?" he asked, and Cassie stared at him silently for a few moments.

"Give me a Potion for Dreamless Sleep," she said, and then her last-minute retort suddenly seemed like a wonderful idea.

"That may not be the solution if you're not recalling them in the first place," Snape was saying, but Cassie was starting to feel a slight ray of hope, because maybe, just maybe, she could start to get this man that was standing right in front of her out of her head. If she could just stop having those lusty dreams about him, maybe she could have some peace and keep her attention on her school work instead.

To her utter surprise, he agreed to it. Reluctantly, he went to his stores and retrieved the purple elixir, although Cassie could tell he wasn't fully satisfied with their current plan. She hoped that it would work, just so the subject of him entering her mind wouldn't have to be brought up yet again.

When he handed her the flask, their hands touched briefly, and shivers went through Cassie's arm and down her entire spine, making her shudder. Oh yes, she was in trouble.

Friday morning, she didn't recall a single drop of a dream when she woke up. But she was informed very quickly by her weary dorm mates that she was shrieking again, and started a new round of apologies in an attempt to keep them from telling Professor Snape. She knew it was not going to work even as she was offering to do their Transfiguration essays over the weekend.

"Black, if this crap keeps up, you'll be sleeping in the corridor!" was Laanstra's response, and the other girls nodded in agreement.

There was no use in trying to avoid Snape today, as she had another round of double Potions that morning. Expecting the worst out of him, she was rather intrigued when he seemed a bit distracted, and treated her with cold indifference. Under normal circumstances, it might have bothered her, but he was acting that way with the entire class, rather than going out of his way to make the seventh years squirm. Even when one Gryffindor boy made giant black flames shoot from his cauldron to the ceiling for a few brief, chaotic seconds, Snape merely disposed of the entire concoction with a simple flick of his wand and sent the student out without berating him first.

Cassie wondered if the first lesson of the year with him treating them like dogs had been some sort of initiation, that maybe he'd treat his elite students with some respect now. Even to her, however, it seemed unlikely. The end of class came, and Cassie almost made it out of the classroom without having to speak with him, but then she heard his voice.

"Miss Black," he said, and she grimaced as she turned from the door, which she was nearly through, and approached the black-haired professor at his desk.

"Professor?" she said, hoping her use of formality wouldn't send him into a rage this time. Rather, he continued to seem a bit troubled.

"How did the potion work for you last night?"

She debated in her head for a few brief seconds before answering. "I don't recall any dreams." It wasn't a lie. Did leaving out the fact that her fellow Slytherin girls were woken up by her screaming count as lying?

He stared at her silently, and she could feel her palms sweating as she wondered if he knew already. _No, he would have said something by now,_ she told herself.

"Anything else, Miss Black?"

"No."

His response was to bare his teeth and inhale sharply, and she knew he had been waiting for her to indulge the entire truth on her own. " _Why_ are you hiding things from me?"

"Why are you having the other girls _spy_ on me?" she countered, and she could tell by the slight twitching under his eye that he was about to lose control.

"You _will_ report to my office this evening, and we will get to the bottom of this," he said, starting to move about the room and wave his wand. Stacks of ingredients began to pull themselves from the cupboards and pile themselves neatly on the small desks throughout the room.

Cassie inhaled slowly before speaking. "No."

"No?" he stopped his movements at once, swiveling gracefully on his heel to face her again. "I don't recall giving you a choice!"

Getting increasingly pissed off, Cassie made for the door, but Snape caught her forearm in his hand as she walked past him.

"Let go of me," she said quietly.

"I am your Head of House, and I am deciding what's best here. You will report to my office - "

"No!"

"Do I have to involve Dumbledore?" Snape hissed, and Cassie yanked her arm from his grasp.

"Go ahead, Severus! Tell him you'd like to rifle through my mind against my will!"

"He would agree with me, and you know it! What has gotten into you, stupid girl? You'd rather someone in this castle invade your mind, possibly control it? You know what dangers that could bring!"

Cassie knew he was right, but right then it was only making her angrier because she just wanted it all to go away. The worrying about him finding out about her attraction to him and the humiliation it would bring, the ruining of their relationship, the assailant on her mind, all of it. All she wanted was to finish her last year peacefully and go on to become a dark wizard catcher; was it so much to ask?

"I'll come to your office tonight," she said slowly after an internal debate, and she found that she couldn't make eye contact with him. "But that doesn't mean I'll agree to Legilimency."

"Fair enough," Snape said, and she knew he was only suspending the argument because he had class starting soon. She left then and passed some first years in the corridor. She caught sight of Draco's platinum head, giving him a small wave as she went, and then saw Ron Weasley.

"Hey, Ron!" she said, feeling some real cheerfulness when she saw the boy, then saw that the Potter by was walking right next to him. "First potions lesson?"

"Yeah," Ron said, making a face, and Cassie smiled at him.

"You'll be alright," she reassured him.

"That's not what Fred and George said," Ron replied dully. "Hey, we're going to Hagrid's at three for tea, you want to come?"

Cassie wanted to decline, as she had a lot of homework to do, but she hadn't had a chance to catch up with the gamekeeper yet, so she agreed. She had class until four and intended to go there to meet up with Ron then. Now she had another reason to fret, as she assumed that Ron's use of 'we' meant himself and Potter. But now was as good a time as any, she told herself. What better way to keep herself distracted before a stressful evening with Snape then by being in a small hut with the Potter boy?

When her lessons were finished for the day and she was headed towards Hagrid's hut, it finally dawned on her. Snape had been distracted because it had been his first class with Potter in it. She made a mental note to ask him why the boy bothered him so much other than what she already knew because there was no way the professor was going to initiate divulging that information to her.

After knocking, Cassie entered the hut and was greeted by a tail-wagging, slobbering Fang. She had thought to snag a rather large soup bone from the kitchens and gave him that to chew on before starting to pour herself a cup of tea. Ron, Harry, and Hagrid were discussing something about Gringotts, and Cassie raised an eyebrow when Harry suddenly stopped talking when she looked at him.

"No worries," she said, taking a seat by the fire. "I have no clue what you're talking about, and I really don't care. Honest."

"Harry, this is Cassie Black," Ron said, finally taking a moment to properly introduce them. "She's been a friend of the family for ages, and she dated my brother, Charlie, up until the summer that is. Cassie, this is - "

"Harry Potter. I know," Cassie said, taking a sip of tea. "How did your Potions lesson go?" The boys exchanged glances, and Cassie groaned.

"Snape is horrible," Ron said. " _Hated_ Harry - "

"He does _not_ hate Harry," Hagrid interjected, sounding like he had repeated the line several times already.

"He does," Harry said, still not looking at Cassie. "He took away two house points."

"That's nothing," Cassie said, nonchalantly waving a hand. "I have Potions with kids from all four houses and he takes points from everyone, and in seventh year he'll do more than two points, trust me."

"Bet he'll never take them from Malfoy," Harry said darkly. "Stupid git." Ron snorted into his tea, and Cassie smirked at him.

"Malfoy is Cassie's cousin!" Ron said gleefully, and Harry looked appalled.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean - " he started to say bashfully, but Cassie shook her head.

"Don't apologize, Harry. I know he's a stupid git," Cassie replied casually. Ron erupted into full-on belly laughter.

Their visit lasted for about an hour, and then the three students headed up towards the castle for dinner after lots of chatting and laughter. The topic of Lord Voldemort murdering Harry's parents didn't come up, but in hindsight, Cassie realized it might have been a weird conversation topic to have touched on considering the circumstances. Either way, she assumed that Ron and Harry had probably already had talked about it between the two of them. She just hoped that Harry wouldn't be as apprehensive around her now that they had been around each other a bit.

They entered the Great Hall, and Cassie reminded them to come to her for tutoring if they felt like they ever needed it. She even saw Harry smile a bit when they headed to their separate tables. Her good mood quickly disintegrated, however, when she remembered her next activity for the evening.

She dragged her feet the entire way to Snape's office. Hoping that he had somehow forgotten their appointment and had double booked with some other poor student's detention, she was sorely disappointed to see that she was alone with him when she entered.

He was seated at his desk, scratching on papers when she approached. Nothing out of the ordinary. She jumped when he waved his wand and the door behind her banged shut and the lock clicked into place. Her nerves were so on edge that the noises seemed to echo in her ears, making her head hurt.

"Good evening, Miss Black," Snape drawled, and Cassie gulped.

"Hello, Severus."

"Have a seat."

She obeyed and waited silently for him to finish what he was doing. She started off entertaining herself by looking around the room at the various shelves of ingredients but was soon gazing fixedly at the deep raven shade of his locks as he bent over his papers.

"Your cousin did well in his lesson today," Snape said, snapping Cassie out of her trance of staring at his hair, and her eyes snapped up to his face as she came back to reality.

"Oh," she said, straightening up in her chair. "That's swell. How did Ron do?"

"Who?"

Cassie sighed and gave him a look that said, _Really?_ "Weasley."

"He was with Potter," Snape sneered suddenly, his demeanor changing drastically in an instant.

"Yes, it seems they're friends," Cassie said carefully. "And Potter seems to think you hate him already. Why would he think that?"

"How do you - " Snape started, but Cassie cut him off.

"I had tea with him and Ron, not an hour ago," she said, "And it seems you've already assumed the position of a bully when you should be looking after him!"

"It's not your concern!" Snape snarled, and Cassie rolled her eyes. "And while you're at it, stop preaching at _me_ and look after your own family instead!"

"Excuse me?"

"You have your cousin to worry about, whom you ignore. Instead, you're concerned with your ex-boy toy's snot-nosed little brother, and the child that's orphaned because of your own murderous family!"

He was trying to get her to stop pointing fingers at him and instead feel guilty for her actions, and she knew it. It wasn't a new game of his. But it stung, and it made her angry anyway.

"Seriously, Severus? Screw off!" she yelled, standing to leave.

"Where do you think you're going?" he snarled back.

"I don't have to listen to this!"

"We have work to do!"

She was near the door now, and he was storming after her. She tried the handle, having forgotten it was locked, so she reached for her robes to fetch her wand. Then, her arm was in his grip again, and she fought the urge to slap him.

"Let go of me, Severus!"

"Miss Black, sit back down!" he barked. "You're picking a fight and using it as an excuse to leave!"

"I am not!"

"Do you think I'm stupid?" he seethed, and he yanked her towards the middle of the classroom. She obliged, only because she'd be in serious trouble if she cursed him. And she knew he was right. He was usually right when it came to her, even when he said blunt, cruel things that made her mad.

She sat at a desk, crossing her arms over her chest, glowering.

"Have you felt someone pull at your mind today, Cassie?" he said, walking around her slowly, like a predatory circling its prey.

"No."

"Are you telling me the truth?"

"Yes!"

"Don't speak to me in that tone," Snape said lowly. "You and I both know you haven't been truthful as of late. What is it that you've been hiding?"

She stood to leave, but he was quick to respond, a quick flick of his wrist placing a spell on her shoulders and forcing her to sit back down. She glared up at him.

"We have to use Legilimency," he said quietly. "I need to get to the bottom of this, or we're putting the entire school in danger."

"No," she said, and he let her stand this time. She headed towards the locked door again, and she got as far as pulling her wand out of her robes to open it when Snape was suddenly on her; he placed a hand on her shoulder and forcefully span her around, so she was pinned between him and the door, his wand in his other hand. He used his body to keep her in place, and then muttered, " _Legilimens!"_

There were images of the classes from the last few days, and being in the common room, having tea at Hagrid's, being at King's Cross and talking to Molly Weasley; he started to go through her study sessions with Juniper and Alpit, and her tutor session on Wednesday, but none of these memories were what was worrying him so he sped right through them, searching for the unknown things that came at night; and then came the images that she had been shielding with so much ferocity. Visions of Snape and Cassie touching, kissing, pawing at one another in every position and location imaginable started running through their connected minds. Right after came some of Cassie's constant worries that somehow, he'd find out, and that she had to get rid of these feelings or she'd never be able to get through this year, and that these unrequited feelings were torture and would be the death of her.

And then, came cold, high laughter, and a blurred outline of a not quite human figure and agony as distant childhood memories were being ripped out of her; even during the duration of this charm, Snape could feel how painful it was, the way the assailant was going through her entire psyche at night. It wasn't enough to grasp what was going on or who was doing it, but it was plenty. He stopped it then.

Cassie and Snape were both struggling to catch their breath when Snape pulled out of her mind then. His black eyes were on her, unblinking, and Cassie was trying desperately to get a read on him as she tried to ground herself again. Then, as her mind came back to her, she suddenly felt enraged, realizing what he had just done.

"You arrogant son of a bitch!" she shrieked, resisting every fiber of her being that was telling her to curse him; instead, she slapped him right in the face. The sound of her hand connecting with his skin was so satisfying that she went to do it again, but he caught her wrist in his hand.

"Stop!" he yelled as she struggled in his grip.

"I told you no!"

"You left me no choice, Cassie!"

"Fuck off," she spat, and he let go of her, letting her stomp away from him. "Move away from the door!"

"That's why you didn't want me to see?" he said, his voice at a near whisper now.

"I mean it, Severus. Move, or I _will_ make you," she said, her wand now in her hand and at the ready.

"Cassie, let's talk - "

" _Move!"_

He listened to her then, stepping aside so she could leave, knowing that she was at her breaking point and that she would probably end up hexing him. But before she was across the threshold, he said, "We have to practice your Occlumency."

She wanted to swear at him again, to tell him he was wrong. But as usual, he wasn't. She'd have to go back to him to do just that, and soon.


	6. The Unread Letter

The hours after Snape had invaded Cassie's mind were some of the most confusing of her existence. She was a tortured mess of emotions, feeling infuriated, betrayed, humiliated, and vulnerable all at once. Not having any clue how to resolve any of these issues, she roamed the castle without any agenda, ending up pacing down by the Black Lake alone for some time. As she skipped pebbles across the dark water, she started to repeat Snape's words in her head, and ruminate over the reasons why he did what he did. It was a gradual process, letting herself come to terms with accepting his actions, and seeing it all from his perspective. It was not the first time in her young life that the Potions Master had seen the harsh truth of her reality, the unfairness that came with being who she was. It probably wouldn't be the last.

As the sun set, and the tranquil environment around her grew duskier still, she began to feel more and more like a damn fool. Of course just letting some unknown entity enter her mind would be dangerous not only to her, but to those around her. She was smarter than that, or at least she thought she was. But she had been so terrified to ruin the one important friendship that she had at Hogwarts that she had been willing to wish the dangers away. Now, she was left wondering if she was that selfish, or naive.

When she finally made her way back to the Entry Hall, she was immediately scolded by a rather stern Percy Weasley, whom she essentially ignored even as he followed her closely and attempted to stick his new shiny prefect badge in her face. The only time she heard a word he was saying was when she heard 'Professor Snape' come from his mouth in a strict, irritating tone, and all it did was make Cassie's thoughts careen from one direction into another.

"...I'd have to tell Professor Snape, you know, Cassie," he was saying, not one step behind her as she made her way to the staircase that lead to the dungeons.

She didn't respond, and now she was thinking not of how stupid she had been acting about this whole situation, but of how she felt about Snape. Snape, one of her oldest friends. Her teacher, her Head of House, her confidant, the person she went to with almost anything short of things like feminine hygiene problems. He drove her nutty at times with his short fuse and his tendencies to criticize her every feature, and he rarely had anything positive to say about absolutely anything ever, but his company was whose she enjoyed the most out of anyone else in the world.

She couldn't let their friendship be ruined. It had to be fixed. 

As she descended the stairs, Percy's voice suddenly flooded her ears, as he was now right beside her, probably intending to try to march her right into Snape's quarters to tattle on her. "...Quarter to midnight, I must go to him straight away - "

"Percy, if you don't shut it right now, I'll tell him how George caught you snogging yourself in the mirror this summer with your badge on," she said.

She made a point to turn and look at him so she could see his ears turn pink. He also looked like he was choking slightly.

"You - what - you wouldn't - "

"Go back to Gryffindor Tower, Percy," Cassie said, not unkindly, and the fifth-year suddenly turned on his heel and went back up the stairs. Cassie giggled for a bit before continuing on her way. As annoying as the interaction was, the humor that it offered was a welcome relief.

As she journeyed further into the dungeons, she weighed her options. She briefly considered going to Snape now, but she was exhausted and her emotions were fried, so she went back to her dorm instead. Even as crawled into bed, she knew part of her was making excuses, as she knew it probably would have been better to get the whole situation resolved now. But even knowing that, she couldn't fathom facing him, knowing he had seen her fantasies and desires, and she dreaded what was to come when they spoke next.

This time after falling asleep, she was fully aware of the attacks on her mind once it happened. She was able to shut them out after a time; in her unconsciousness, she couldn't tell how long it took. But afterward, she couldn't fall back asleep, choosing to go out to the common room to attempt to study instead. It was a fruitless task, and she ended up rereading the same few pages of text over and over, barely taking in the sentences in front of her. By the time Saturday morning came and other Slytherins began to meander from their dorms to make their way to breakfast, Cassie felt like the living dead.

"Black, I'd thought you died in your sleep, not hearing your incessant yelling," Danika said as she passed by the couch Cassie was sitting on, yawning loudly. Cassie gave her a small nod, not having the energy for a retort that morning.

Cassie skipped breakfast in the Great Hall that morning, choosing to stop by the kitchens yet again for an egg sandwich and a bit of fruit. Without putting much thought into it, she was out on the grounds again, the chill in the morning air so prominent that she could see her breath as she sped along. As far as she could tell, there were no other students on the grounds this early in the morning, which was what she was hoping for, because she was heading for the Forbidden Forest.

Venturing there when she hoped no one was looking was something she had done many times over her years at Hogwarts, although she tried not to do it too many times as to not attract attention to herself and get caught. She used it as a way to get some much-needed privacy, and this morning she was feeling the need to escape everything. The very idea of going to the Great Hall and being in Snape's presence had been way too much, and even going to the library to study and potentially make small talk with other students was enough to make her toes curl right then. The Slytherin common room would be full on a cold Saturday, and it wasn't like she had Charlie or Tonks to wander around with like she used to. All of those realizations combined with her lack of sleep almost sent her into a panic attack, and she had just started to head towards the forest without a second thought, keeping a close eye out for movement in Hagrid's hut as she went.

She never went into the Forbidden Forest at night, short of one or two times with Charlie to get a thrill when they were trying to dare one another. Cassie only ever stuck to one familiar path that followed a small brook on the outskirts. It led to a little clearing with a large, jagged boulder that she liked to sit on, and even in the daylight it could be difficult to find. She found the gnarled trunk of the oak tree that told her she was going the right way, and she moved along at a careful but hurried pace, feeling like someone might call her out at any moment.

The boulder came into sight in not more than fifteen minutes, and she breathed a quiet sigh of relief. After climbing up onto it without slipping and banging herself as she had done many times in the past, she sat cross-legged and took out her wand, conjuring a small, contained flame to cup in her hand to keep herself warm. Then, she sat back, not daring to keep her eyes closed, as that was a stupid thing to do in the forest, but attempted to relax in her solidarity. Here, she could enjoy the quiet. Here, she didn't have to deal with anyone.

She was enjoying the quiet for not more than a few minutes when she heard the stealthy, subdued flutter of wings above her, and she sat to attention to try to get a closer look; before she realized what was happening, a letter was dropping onto her a lap. She let out a laugh of relief when she realized that one of the school owls had followed her out there to deliver her mail. She waved to the tawny owl as it glided away, and she looked down to see her name in familiar penmanship. It took her a moment to realize it was Charlie's.

Then, a few things happened _almost_ simultaneously, at least in Cassie's mind they had, for she had been so tired and her nerves so fried. Her heart began to beat wildly at wondering what Charlie, who she hadn't heard from since he had gone to Romania, would possibly have to say to her now. As she shakily turned the envelope over to open it, she heard the crunch of approaching footsteps, causing her to startle tremendously, and as she extinguished her small ball of flames and clamored from her precious boulder, she caught sight of a glint of silvery liquid on a dead trunk a few yards away.

Even as the thought to hide behind the boulder crossed her mind, Severus Snape came into view, and Cassie froze dead in her tracks. He looked livid; there was no hiding, no running from him now.

" _What_ do you _think_ you are doing out here?" he hissed, his voice dangerously low as he approached her. Right then, she'd rather he'd been yelling. Cassie was at a loss for words for a few moments and swallowed hard. "Do you _realize_ how dangerous it is in here?"

"Yes," was all Cassie could muster at first, and then Snape took a step forward and ripped Charlie's letter from her hand. He glanced at it, flipped it over once, looked at her for a few long seconds, then pointed towards the path.

"Back to the castle, now!" he shouted, and his abrupt change in volume made Cassie flinch. She started to walk, but slowly. Then, she remembered the glint of silver and stopped walking after only a few steps.

"Severus, wait - "

"Do as you're told!" he commanded, but she disobeyed, instead going back the way they came. She heard him growl in frustration, but went over to the dead tree where she had seen it, squatting down to point it out. She didn't have to say anything, and his sallow features went from anger to astonishment. He came over to the spot to join her, and then slowly started to follow the trail of shiny liquid.

"Wand out," he said to her quietly after taking out his own, and he motioned for her to follow, stuffing Charlie's now unimportant letter in the pocket of his robes.

"Is that what I think it is?" Cassie asked, and he glanced at her.

"What do you think it is?" he asked as if quizzing her during a class, and she rolled her eyes.

"Unicorn blood."

"Then yes, it is."

"Ten points to Slytherin!" she whispered sarcastically, and he scowled at her.

"Now is not the time for jokes, Miss Black. Whatever injured this creature is very dangerous," he said ominously as they continued slowly. But the area around them was not particularly dense with foliage, and the sunlight was reaching down to the ground somewhat, making it seem like they were just having an early morning stroll through the trees. If it was not for the forest's menacing reputation and the trail of bodily fluids they were following, it might have been almost therapeutic.

They followed the trail without speaking much more for another ten minutes or so, before it started to lessen significantly and then disappear altogether, indicating that the creature's injuries had clotted off and it had gotten away from whatever had opened it up. Even so, Snape was wary, and he was adamant that Hagrid be told of what they had found as soon as they got back, as he had never heard of a unicorn being harmed before.

With the ice being broken between the two of them, Cassie was now feeling much braver. "Let's not head back quite yet, okay Severus?" she said as they started to back track the way they came, and Snape gave her a cautious side glance.

"Wanting to spend more time in the deadly forest, are you?" he said, and she knew she wasn't going to be getting off all that easily. "Why did you come in here?"

"I...wanted to be alone," she said slowly.

"There are plenty of places around the castle and the grounds to be alone!"

"Severus, I've been coming out here for years. Same spot since fourth year, in fact," she confessed. "I just made the mistake of coming out here before the mail was delivered. You followed the owl, didn't you?"

"The one day someone actually sends you something," he said, knowing it was a bit of a jab.

"Thanks for that."

"You're thoughtless sometimes, Miss Black," he responded as they came into view of her clearing again, and Cassie pushed past him to climb onto her boulder again.

"And thanks for that! You never fail to remind me of my shortcomings, do you, Severus?" she said, and sat cross-legged on the same spot she was on earlier that morning.

"Get down from there! We're going back at once - "

"No, _we_ aren't!" she retaliated, lying on her back and placing her hands behind her head, like this was the most casual situation in the world. "You can go if you want, but I'd rather talk about last night."

"Miss Black, this is not up for debate," he hissed angrily, and Cassie knew she was pushing her luck with him, but she also knew he wouldn't just go back without her.

"I'll go back," she said, not moving from her spot at all, "once we talk."

"The forest is extremely dangerous, as you've just seen evidence of, and you have someone going around trying to enter and possibly control your mind, and yet you run around alone, gallivanting into the forest like you're invincible! What you fail to realize, Miss Black, is that I don't have the time, nor do I have the patience, to keep chasing after you!" he sneered, and Cassie was glad she was looking up at the forest canopy rather than his face. She knew he was probably looking like he was ready to kill her right then.

"I didn't ask you to chase after me this morning," she responded calmly.

"No, and you didn't ask me to enter your mind last night either, did you? But it had to be done!" he said, and she sat up suddenly, glad they were getting somewhere and ready to have this conversation. She could tell he was angry and getting defensive, and just as she suspected, he looked like he was ready to curse her.

"I know, Severus. I should have listened to you, I'm so sorry," she said. "I was terrified and selfish, and I shouldn't have slapped you, and I'm sorry."

It must not have been the response that he expected, because he blinked at her a few times and was silent for a few moments before letting out a quiet, "Oh."

"And I'm sorry that I put you through making that decision," she continued, and he held up his hand. They were still feet apart, with her seated on her rock, he standing on the forest floor.

"Then we should start Occlumency lessons straight away," he said. "Tonight, even."

"You have detention," she pointed out. "For the seventh-years that couldn't do the Wit-Sharpening Potion."

"That's right, I nearly forgot," he muttered, motioning for her to get off the boulder, and she started to climb off. Absentmindedly, he reached out a hand and grabbed one of hers to help keep her steady. "After, then. I know it will be late."

Cassie nearly gasped, as their connected hands sent waves of electricity up her arm and down her spine. She didn't know if it was her imagination or just her being desperately optimistic, but she thought he might have felt it too, because he suddenly had a surprised look on his face as if someone had shocked him. As soon as she was on the ground, he let go of her, and they were left looking at each other silently. Then Cassie felt that surge of bravery again.

"I want to talk about what you saw," she said softly, because although she was feeling bold enough to bring it up, she was still incredibly timid about putting her heart on the line. "Please."

The seconds of silence between them seemed like an eternity as both of them waited for the other to speak first. Cassie was trying to figure out the right wording to explain herself, because she couldn't possibly do it in a few short sentences, when he opened his mouth first.

"I saw a lot of images," he said, his deep voice so quiet that it barely seemed to register on her waiting ears. "It was hard to decipher what I was even seeing, Cassie."

No matter what Snape told her over the years, Cassie wasn't stupid. It was a rather definitive statement, she could tell. It was his way of avoiding the awkward subject. He didn't want to talk about it. And for her, it was as good as him telling her no, that he didn't want her, that he was rejecting her.

All that she could say, then, was, "Oh."

She went back up the castle without a fight, then. She knew she had to try to get some studying in now, because she had a long night of practicing Occlumency ahead of her.

* * *

The walk back to the grounds had been a rather silent one between Snape and Cassie. He assumed she was tired after their trek through the forest, and he had sent her back up to the castle alone so he could speak to Hagrid about the unicorn blood they had discovered. Hagrid had shared the same concern with him, that whatever had injured the innocent creature was something to be careful of, and that they would need to keep an eye out. Hagrid said he was on it. Snape was starting to have his theories about these occurrences; between having the Potter boy here, Cassie's mental intruder, her dreams, having the stone in the school, and now this, he would never believe they were all coincidences. He had his eye on someone, but it was a tad early to test his theory out. Time would tell, as it always did at Hogwarts.

Once he was back in his office, it was back to the mundane task of grading papers. He was working on that until lunch time, and it wasn't until he stood to head to the Great Hall that he discovered Cassie's forgotten letter in his pocket. He'd give it back to her at lunch, assuming she would actually show up for a blasted meal one of these days. She was making it rather hard to make her whereabouts predictable as of late, although he had to admit he couldn't blame her.

When he took his seat at the High Table and scanned his house table for Cassie, he wasn't surprised to see that she wasn't there. Muttering some indiscernible profanities under his breath, he made a mental note to find her first-year cousin and task him with tracking her down and giving it to her throughout the day. Maybe it would keep him busy and out of trouble for half a day, that would be a welcome change. Snape was tired of having to contact Lucius after each time Draco decided to play bully and then having to kiss his butt for punishing him for it. The charade was getting tiresome already, and having been on rocky terms with Cassie for the first part of the term, he couldn't even trust her to dole out her form of punishment on her cousin and leave it at that. He'd never told the girl, but he'd always admired her slightly dark sense of justice she liked to sick upon the bullies of Hogwarts. There were plenty of times he'd known she'd done things to the blood purists over the years and he'd turned a blind eye, only punishing her if the other professors had known as well. It was a secret he'd maybe only divulge after she'd graduated. And that was a big maybe.

Snape found Draco along with his cronies Crabbe and Goyle right after lunch, although it wasn't in a situation he was pleased to find the trio in; they were in the courtyard attempting to give the Longbottom boy a wedgie, and the Potter and Weasley boys were about to defend him with their fists. Thank god all of them were first years and didn't know how to hex each other yet, or he'd be cleaning puke and pus in addition to taking house points.

After taking a rather large amount from Gryffindor and none from Slytherin, Snape attempted to give the letter to Draco and send him to find Cassie.

"Oi, not again!" Draco whined, rolling his eyes dramatically. "I'm not an errand boy!"

"I'm not asking," Snape warned, and then the Weasley boy, who was eavesdropping, chimed in.

"She's over at Hagrid's with Fred and George, I think. I'll take it," he offered. Without offering to give any points back to Gryffindor, Snape handed the letter over.

"Don't open it," Snape warned.

"Hey, this is Charlie's handwriting!" the Weasley boy exclaimed, looking at the envelope excitedly with Potter, and Snape felt a familiar pang, one that he hadn't felt in a very, very long time.

Was it jealousy?

Nevermind, push it aside. There was work to do. There was nothing to be jealous over, mind you. Cassie was a seventh-year _student,_ for Merlin's sake. She's seventeen. Which is of age, by the way...BUT no matter, she's a student.

And what's to be jealous of? Charlie Weasley, washed up Hogwarts Quidditch Star, is an ex-boyfriend. He's in Romania. He's nothing to her.

But it doesn't matter, even if he was something to her.

Damnit, get it together.

Snape pushed on with grading papers, and prepping for detention, and keeping tabs on Potter for the afternoon. Hmm, Quirrell seemed extra jumpy today, hasn't he? Not buying it, the beady-eyed, turban-wearing fraud. He'd better not even think of saying something odd to Cassie again, or he'd wish he'd never walked through the castle doors in the first place...

And there Snape was, thinking of Cassie again. He was finding that she crossed his mind more and more frequently as of late. Especially since he'd delved into her mind and seen her fantasies of the two of them, it was like he couldn't shake her. And then they'd briefly gripped hands in the woods, and it was like an electric current between the two of them, and he kept reliving the feeling.

But he couldn't. She's a student, she's a student, she's a student.

All he could focus on was the fact that they had Occlumency lessons later that night. That was a problem. Because he was supposed to be focusing on keeping the Potter boy safe, Lily's son. He had to focus.

Detention with the seventh-years came. It was a mainly silent affair as they came in, sat down, copied text. Snape tried to focus on papers, lesson planning. It seemed to go on forever and yet fly by as he anticipated the raven-haired girl walking through his door next. His classroom emptied, he sat at his desk and waited, it was ten o'clock, and then she came in.

"Severus," she said, greeting him by his first name. Her long, dark locks were cascading down her shoulders. Being a weekend, and late at night, she was wearing a plain black t-shirt and jeans, her wand poking out of her pocket.

"Professor Snape," he corrected her, trying to establish the formality to keep the wall up between them. It rarely ever worked. "Have a seat, Miss Black." She obeyed, picking a random desk and settling in. They didn't have to discuss the process of practicing this, as they'd done it countless times before. At least tonight would be nothing would be like the previous one. Tonight, they were on the same page and would be dancing the same dance. They were both ready, and without saying another word, they began.

Perhaps Cassie was motivated to keep Snape from seeing her fantasies again, because she was able to force him out and keep him out, and they had practiced for only an hour. Snape was rather proud of her, because he was not doing her the favor of going easy on her, not in the least bit. Nonetheless, they were both exhausted by the end of it, and bid each other goodnight without saying much.

Now, Snape had to go to bed alone with fresh images of Cassie's fantasies of the two of them, which was frustrating. But one thing that made him a bit cheerful was that while in her mind, he saw what was in Charlie's letter, and every word of it had been platonic.


	7. Hogsmeade

After practicing Occlumency with Snape two more times that weekend, Cassie was rather pleased with the results. She had been able to push him out of her mind in record time, and even he had given her the rare compliment afterward, _'I never would have thought you capable of such discipline, although I'm not confident that it will last much longer than a fortnight'._

They both went into the next week of lessons knowing they had given her the tools she needed to keep her would-be intruder out, and their agreed-upon plan was for her to meditate before bed, clear her mind of any thoughts or emotions so there was nothing to prey upon. It was a daunting task at first, but Cassie was up for it. Sunday night, she sat on her bed and drew the canopy shut, cast a silencing charm, and did just that.

Monday morning, she didn't have to ask the girls in her dorm if she had woken up screaming, as they told her right away that she hadn't, and that they had all nearly overslept for classes because of it. She almost wanted to skip on her way to breakfast, she was so tickled. When she got to the Great Hall, she purposely caught Snape's eye and gave him a small smile and a nod to communicate that all was well, and she got a curt nod in return.

Lessons were gloriously uneventful, and although she was tempted to be distracted by her success and thoughts of Snape, she used her freshly proficient skills to fixate on the tasks in front of her. It wasn't until she was sitting at her spot in the library, ready to tutor, when she let her mind wander freely again, and then she was quickly preoccupied with Hermione Granger.

"Granger, why don't we let Neville ask a few questions?" Cassie suggested after playing another round of trivia in which Hermione never, ever gave the incorrect answer.

"He's learning just by listening, aren't you, Neville?" Hermione said rather quickly and went back to searching through her Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook to find a subject to be tested on. Neville looked like he was about to say something, but was cut off when Hermione starting to speak over him.

"Hold on, Granger," Cassie said, and she flicked her wrist, effectively closing the young girl's textbook and earning an annoyed 'hmph' from her. "Speak up, Neville."

"Well, it's just..." he started.

"Go on," Cassie encouraged, and Hermione folded her arms over her chest impatiently. Just then, Ron and Harry walked in and immediately started to make their way over to her table as well. Neville seemed to gain newfound confidence by the boys' appearance, and his voice found an audible volume.

"It's just, Potions," Neville said, and then stopped there.

"Yes, what about Potions?"

"It's terrifying!" Neville exclaimed, and Ron and Harry, both overhearing him, seemed to agree wholeheartedly. Cassie laughed a bit at the first years' response.

"The subject of Potions is terrifying, or the professor is terrifying?" she asked, and the Gryffindors exchanged worried glances. Only Hermione appeared to remain indifferent. "Well, what can I help you with? Would you like to work on your essays together? Or we could go over the last potion you made in class and see where you went wrong."

"Can we make the potion that we'll be making in this week's lesson?" Ron asked with an air of hopefulness in his voice, and Cassie shook her head. She was about to tell him that Professor Snape would consider that an unfair advantage over the rest of the class, but Hermione suddenly cut in.

"That's cheating!" she nearly screeched, and Ron winced like someone had drug their nails across a chalkboard.

"Calm down," Cassie said, wanting to speak before Ron did, because his ears were turning the shade of pink that was the Weasley family trait, and she knew he was about to lose his shit, "it was just a suggestion, and we aren't going to do it. How about we make last week's potion. I have to fetch the ingredients from the dungeons, but I'll be back as soon as I can." She left straight away, letting the first years open their texts and get set up as best they could.

She nearly jogged to the Potions classroom, wanting to make the best use of their time as she could, and entered it with barely a greeting to the Potions Master, who was sitting at his desk as usual. Two fourth-year Hufflepuffs were standing and chopping dung beetles, clearly serving detention.

"Miss Black," Snape said, raising an eyebrow as she started to raid his stores without an explanation first.

"Tutoring," she said, and he nodded in acknowledgment. He watched closely, obviously taking inventory of what she was pulling out.

"Which first-year dunderhead?" he drawled, sounding rather uninterested, as he had deduced she was pulling what she needed to make a boil cure elixir.

"Granger, Longbottom, Weasley, and Potter," she said and started to speed towards the door again, wanting to get this done so she wouldn't be keeping the young students up too late.

"Watch them carefully!" he warned sharply. "Longbottom nearly melted off his skin on Friday."

"Good to know," Cassie said, hurrying out the door, and she knew who she'd be making take the lead. She had it planned in her head, was focused on what she was going to be doing next, when she felt a familiar tug on her mind's edge; it made her skid to a halt, and she almost dropped her jar of snake fangs. Almost as quickly as she had felt it, she made the conscious effort to clear her thoughts and picture the door to her head slam shut, rather than wait for the intrusion to stop on its own.

She didn't feel another attempt after that, and as she looked around fervidly, she saw no one except for a pair of Slytherin fifth year girls walking the opposite direction, appearing to be deep in conversation. Cassie briefly considered telling Snape straight away, but she figured there was not much else there could be done at the moment, other than keeping the mental assailant out. She made her way back to the library, her potions ingredients still in hand.

"Alright!" she said cheerfully, setting the contents in her arms down, and lit a fire under the cauldron with a flick of her wand. "Whoever did the worst on Friday will be taking the lead on this," she said, knowing who that someone would be, and she had to stifle a laugh when the other three students all simultaneously pointed to Neville.

Just as she predicted, the young wizard did just fine when not in the presence of the menacing Professor Snape. Cassie complimented him every step of the way, and with the encouragement of his fellow Gryffindors, he made a perfect boil cure. Cassie was feeling rather happy for the boy and had the four students settled into the desks to work on Muggle Studies essays when her cousin and his entourage strolled in. She hoped he'd go over to Quartermaine, who had just dismissed the student he had just been working with, but she wasn't surprised at all when he came up to her desk instead, where she had pulled out her own homework.

"Draco," she said, not bothering to close her textbook as she greeted him. "What can I do for you?"

"Hello, cousin," he said with an air of smugness, and she already wanted to wipe the smirk off his face. She didn't know what the attitude he was sporting was for, but she was ready to change it for him, and quickly. "I've got some homework for you to do. Charms essay, two feet of parchment, and Muggle Studies - "

"I'm going to stop you right there," Cassie said, sitting straight up in her seat. "I don't _do_ homework _for_ you, Draco. I'm a tutor. I give you help if you need it. There's a difference."

"That's not what I've heard from the older students. You pay the right price, and the tutors will write it for you," Malfoy said, and he pulled galleons from his pocket, throwing them lazily on the desk in front of her.

"Draco," Cassie said sharply, pushing the coins back at him. "Do you see me doing any of these students' homework right now?"

Malfoy turned and looked at the Gryffindors at the desks, who were now all stopped in their writing and glaring at him. "Well, of course not, it's not like any of them can afford to pay for it, especially Weasley, he'd have to sell the robes off his back, of course, that would never be enough." Crabbe and Goyle started to guffaw stupidly. "He'd have to sell Potter's, plus Potter's glasses, and maybe his stupid prefect brother's badge - "

Cassie had her wand underneath the desk and lightly flicked it. The movement went unnoticed by all of the students in the room, but what they did notice was the loud ripping noise as Malfoy's pants split open on his ass; Cassie was thrilled that it was after hours and he had ditched his robes for the day, giving her this grand opportunity. His hands immediately went to the torn fabric to cover the exposed fabric underneath, which today was bright white underwear.

"Mend it!" Draco yelled at her as every student in the room except for Crabbe and Goyle began to laugh at him.

"You don't have enough galleons," she sneered, and Malfoy, who was arrogant but not stupid enough to think he could convince Quartermaine to help him right then either, fled the room.

As Cassie correctly predicted, she heard about the incident from Snape the next day, that she shouldn't bully her cousin, nor should she be showing favoritism to the Gryffindors over her own house; it was an argument the two had had many times over her school career, the issue of her house pride. And then days later, she had a howler from Lucius over breakfast, imploring her to do right by her cousin and stop bringing shame to the family. It pissed her off and dampened her mood, as her week had been going quite well up until that point, short of pining over the Head of Slytherin.

Cassie was thrilled when she learned of Potter being made seeker of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, not because she really cared about the sport, but because it made Malfoy so, so angry. She had heard what he had done to Longbottom during their first flying lesson, and karma had given him the justice he deserved without Cassie having to intervene. It was a sweet victory in her mind. She just wished she could knock some vanity out of him permanently before it ruined him, but she knew it probably couldn't be helped at this point. She hated it.

She expressed these concerns to Snape a few weeks later, and he didn't express agreement or disagreement. He merely took a sip of tea and kept grading papers. It was a Saturday night, the first one of October, and they had fallen back into their somewhat familiar routine from the last school year, just being in each other's company and not doing anything of particular importance in his office. The only part that was different this year, was that Cassie kept pushing naughty thoughts out of her mind.

Tonight was even a little bit different, though. The previous night she hadn't even dreamed of him in a sexual nature; it had just been of the two of them cuddling and hugging, and now she was just picturing the two of them doing just that. She wondered what his reaction would be if she would get up right now, walk behind his desk, and wrap her arms around his broad shoulders, maybe bend down so she could nuzzle her face into his neck and hair and take in his scent -

"What?" she said, slightly startled, as she realized just then that he had been speaking to her.

He raised an eyebrow at her, as if to ask her, how dare she make him repeat himself, but he did just that. "If you would care to pay attention, I said that if the boy is anything like his father, then he's a lost cause."

Cassie nodded. "Oh. Yes."

Snape sighed, as if he were perturbed by the entire conversation, and went back to scratching on papers for a few moments before Cassie spoke again.

"Severus?"

"Hmm."

"If that's how you feel about the Malfoys, then why do you work so hard to stay on their good side?"

"I don't."

Cassie snorted then, and Snape stopped what he was writing so he could look up at her and glare. "You don't? Well, pardon me. I must have been confused for my entire life."

"Don't talk about what you don't understand, you stupid girl."

There it was. She had hit a nerve, but then she knew she was on the right track. Now, her curiosity was peaked. "Why not just tell Lucius to fuck off? We both know you want to. He's a fucking pustule. You're so much better than him!"

"I'd ask you the same - " Snape started, and Cassie could sense him going into defensive mode, as the tension in the room grew palpable.

"Ha! You _know_ I have told him to fuck off! Over and over!" she exclaimed, standing up, feeling heated herself now. "The only reason I was with the Malfoys this summer is that it would have been awkward with the Weasleys, having been broken up with Charlie and all, and Aunt Dromeda won't have me for more than a few days at a time of course, because god forbid it draws too much negative attention to the family," she said, and she was pacing now, growing frustrated at her lack of a home life. "Do you know what Lucius told me this summer? Do you?"

"No," said his low voice, his black eyes locked on her every move as she walked back and forth in front of him.

"No, because I didn't tell you," she said, her words coming out faster and faster as she went, "He told me, Severus, that if I wanted to start an uprising, he'd fund it, back me up. He reminded me, _once again_ , that if I wanted to be the next Lord freaking Voldemort, that he'd be my fucking campaign manager! What a thrilling summer that was! And this creep has got his hand up the Minister's ass!"

"Why are you just saying this now?"

"Because it never does any good, does it?" she said, shaking her head. "That man has so many political ties, so many ways of protecting himself, the slimy git. No one can ever touch him. But you know that. So I'm going to ask you again, knowing what you know, Severus. Why don't you just tell him to fuck off?"

"Because the next time your father comes to power, I plan to spy. I have to play the part."

Cassie suddenly stopped pacing, coming to stand in front of Snape's desk and slamming her hands on his desk. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Because that's how I'll be most valuable when the time comes," he said quietly, and Cassie was shaking her head again.

"What if he never comes back? You're just going to keep 'playing the part'?"

"Yes."

"That sounds incredibly dangerous!"

"Being in any part of a war is dangerous, Cassie." He stacked the parchment he had been grading neatly and stood up, going to place it on a shelf and retrieve the next pile. Cassie was silent, lost in her thoughts for a few moments as the wizard moved about the room.

"Severus?" she asked, still learning forward onto the desk as she spoke. "What about you?"

"What?"

"Why didn't I just stay with you this summer?" she asked, and she stood up straight, folding her arms over her chest. "That would have been nice, wouldn't it?" Snape was still turned towards one of his shelves, and Cassie came to stand behind his desk, not sure why she was going there instead of staying where she was. When he turned around, he had likely intended to go back to his desk to sit back down, but saw her right by his chair. He stopped short.

"I think we would have killed each other in a week," he said evenly. "And besides that, it would have been inappropriate."

Cassie bit the corner of her bottom lip, and she saw his eyes flit down to her mouth, only for a moment. Maybe she had imagined it. "I'm seventeen. I'm of age. Why would it have been inappropriate?"

"Because you're a student and I'm your teacher, Cassie," he said slowly. "People would have...inferred something."

"Oh, what people?" she said, smiling. "My nonexistent parents?" He didn't respond, and was looking at her so apprehensively that she almost felt bad for doing something as innocent as standing behind his desk rather than in front of it. But then again, the simple act was making her own heart pound wildly in her chest, so how innocent could her intentions be?

Cassie took one step towards him, then another. Her arms were still folded in front of her chest as she went, but her blue eyes were locked on his. He looked like he was holding his breath, but then again, she wasn't sure if she was breathing, either. She took another step, and then she was standing so close to him that she had to bend her neck back just to maintain eye contact with him.

She reached an arm out and slowly took the stack of parchment from him, tossing them onto the desk so they were out of the way.

"Miss Black," Snape said then, his voice almost a whisper, "what are you doing?"

"I don't know," she said truthfully, and then she was standing on her tiptoes, reaching out an arm and wrapping it behind his neck. Before she had time to worry about what was happening, she felt a large hand on the side of her face and in her hair, reciprocating her own motions, and their lips came together. It was like fireworks, every molecule of her body feeling like it was about to explode, having her countless dreams becoming reality like this.

Their lips remained pressed together for a few seconds, and then they started to move in sync with a need that was shared mutually between the two of them. Cassie could feel a familiar tightness in her belly and a pulsating in her groin begin, and soon she was running her tongue across her professor's lips for more contact. When he realized that she was asking for more, he complied, his tongue crashing into hers, and a growl erupted from deep within his throat as he suddenly turned and pressed her into the desk.

No stranger to physical intimacy, Cassie was about to start losing articles of clothing, when their progression suddenly halted. Snape was still on top of her, his weight keeping her on the desk, when he said, "This has to stop!" and his roaming hands were off of her.

"Severus, what?" she asked, absolutely at a loss as the Potions Master pulled away from her and stood up. He was still facing her, but backing away like she had stung him.

"No. We can't, Cassie."

"Yes, we can, Severus, what in the world - "

"You need to leave. Now!" he shouted, and Cassie was nearly in tears as she straightened out her disheveled clothing and quickly walked around the desk. Her wounded pride kept her from arguing as she normally would, and she left him without another word.

What she didn't know, was that when she had tossed the stack of essays aside, the name 'Potter' had been visible on one of them. It had stirred up ancient memories of a red-haired, emerald-eyed girl, and had made him feel so guilty that he couldn't possibly let himself be happy at that moment with Cassie.

* * *

The next weeks were miserable for Cassie. What she had feared had come to fruition, and after that Saturday night in Snape's office, it seemed she had lost him. He had never offered her an explanation for why he had suddenly changed his mind after they had started kissing, and now it seemed he was attempting to avoid her altogether, short of minimally interacting in class. In an act of desperation, she had even purposefully screwed up a potion just to have a reason to have him keep her after class or give her detention, and he hadn't even taken the bait then, choosing instead to send her to Professor Flitwick for punishment.

She tried to spend more time with Alpit and Juniper, although she found their worries about grades quite trivial, and she found that she was losing her temper quite easily with them. She wanted so desperately to speak with Tonks, but hadn't gotten a response from her first letter yet, and knew that was fruitless. And Charlie's letter, though pleasant, and been incredibly formal and full of pleasantries, and Cassie was convinced that he had only sent it to her after being guilt-tripped by Molly. She'd never felt more alone than she did right now. Finding that her favorite time of the week was now during her tutoring lessons with first years, Cassie was becoming increasingly disgusted with herself and her situation. She was starting to wish that the school would be done so she could graduate and be away from Hogwarts.

Cassie had one little glimmer of excitement coming up, as the first scheduled Hogsmeade trip was to be taking place soon. She had been there countless times over the years and wasn't expecting anything new there, but she was welcoming the change of pace and a chance to get off the grounds for an afternoon. At this point, she was more than willing to go by herself and just meander around, but was happy when Quartermaine offered to accompany her. They hadn't spent much time together outside of their tutoring sessions, so she was a bit curious to get to know him a bit further.

The Saturday of the trip was a cold one, and snow was coming down slowly in large, fluffy flakes. Cassie and Theodore went to the Three Broomsticks for butterbeer, and Cassie learned all about his upbringing. His mother was a Muggle, his father a half-blood. He had a younger sister in Ravenclaw and a younger brother, a Squib. He was aspiring to be a journalist for the Daily Prophet. He was nice, not particularly funny or interesting, but Cassie appreciated his company.

They browsed at Zonko's and ended up in front of the Shrieking Shack, because Cassie had noticed that the Weasley twins were there setting off a particularly large load of horse-shaped firecrackers that were now galloping down the street and causing some chaos for the Hogwarts students and residents alike. After Cassie had told them to go and round up their escaped Zonko's products, she found herself alone with Theodore, and then the street seemed eerily quiet.

"We should head back," Cassie said, rubbing her gloved hands together. "Getting dark soon."

"Yeah," Theodore agreed, and they started back towards the center of the village, when a man seemed to step out from the middle of nowhere. Cassie didn't know why, but she didn't have a good feeling from the start, with the man's determined look on his face, and his cruel, beady eyes.

"You'll stop right there, you will," the man said, pulling out his wand. To the right of Cassie and Theodore, a woman appeared. Then, another beside her. Another man behind them. They were surrounded. The street was deserted except for the four newcomers, and Cassie and Theodore.

"We were just heading back to Hogwarts," Cassie said, narrowing her eyes as she turned her head to take in the location of all four of them. Theodore looked like he was frozen stiff. "Students, you see."

"We can't let you go back there," one of the witches said, and Cassie ever so slowly inched her hand towards her wand.

"Yeah? And why's that?" Cassie asked, wondering if she should strike first, if Theodore would be useful in a duel or would just get himself hurt.

"Because we've got to protect the Boy Who Lived."

And there it was. Cassie couldn't pretend like she was surprised. Nonetheless, she had zero patience to begin with as of late, her nerves had been so on edge.

"Theodore," she said calmly, but firmly, "Get out of here. Now."

The Hufflepuff looked at her grimly, his face drained of all color. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.

"Listen to her, boy. We don't have any issue with you," said one of the wizards, and Theodore took off running towards the heart of the village. Cassie breathed a sigh of relief, as at least he was out of danger now. She felt her heart thud hard, but slow and even, in her chest. In the time it took for her attackers to allow Theodore to escape, she had been able to grip her wand.

Even though she had been on edge for the last few weeks and her emotions drained, she was calm at this moment, because this, she was born to do.

She knew she could have taken them down in a matter of seconds, assuming they were your average witches and wizards. One, two, three, four, as fast as you could count them. That wouldn't have been a problem. But these weren't Death Eaters. They were citizens of the magical community, thinking they were doing the right thing. They were probably parents of the students she went to Hogwarts with. So she had to stay subdued, wait for their first move.

And move first they did.

Cassie let out a grunt of pain when the first witch with the red hair yelled, " _Diffindo!"_ and it sliced open just below her collar bone and onto her chest. She staggered a bit, pressing her free hand to the gash and pulling it away, seeing her blood staining her glove. Instantly, she was on higher alert, and one of the wizards yelled, " _Incendio!_ "

Cassie deflected it with ease, and the second witch attempted to ignite her with the same rudimentary spell. Skilled, this bunch was not, but it didn't take long for Cassie to realize, they weren't just trying to stop her from going back to Hogwarts, they were trying to kill her.

Turning on her heel, looking like a whirl of black robes and hair as she blocked spell after spell, Cassie kept them at bay as the foursome continued to attempt to slice, burn and scald her; as their courage grew, so did her rage. Finally, when she heard one of the wizards yell, " _Crucio!"_ did something inside of her snap; after deflecting it, she let out a bellow of indignation, pointing her wand towards the ground and driving it downwards, sending a shock wave that knocked all four of them off their feet in an instant. Three of them weren't moving, and Cassie was satisfied to see that the one that attempted to use the Unforgivable on her still was. Still lying on his stomach on the ground, he pointed his wand up at her feebly, saying, " _Avad - Avada - "_

Cassie shot out her free arm and made a fist, dragging the wizard to his feet, an invisible force around his neck choking him as she yanked him towards her. The look of fear on his features made her feel immensely satisfied.

"No, no, you have to _mean_ it," she said, echoing words that her father had told her when she was six. The wizard was right in front of her now, and she raised her wand. She wasn't even sure what she was going to do to him, but now he was turning blue, and all she knew was that she was so incredibly angry that they were going to kill her, and for what? For existing?

"CASSIE! STOP!" came a voice, and Cassie turned to see professors McGonagall, Quirrell, and Sprout running towards her. The sight of familiar faces seemed to pull her out of her rage, and she unclenched her first, letting the man fall to the ground in a heap.

"What happened?!" McGonagall shrieked, "The blood?" and Cassie looked down to see that her own blood had pooled around her feet. She opened her mouth to tell them that she and Theodore had been ambushed, that she had been attacked, when suddenly the world around her was turning black, and she fell the ground in a heap, as well.


	8. Threats

Cassie was still out cold when Snape burst through the hospital wing doors, having just run there from the dungeons and nearly toppling over every student and staff member that had happened to be in his path. Percy Weasley, who Madam Pomfrey had sent to fetch the Head of Slytherin, had also almost nearly been trampled in his panicked attempt to get there as quickly as he could, but had decided to follow him nonetheless and had managed to keep pace with the older wizard.

"Severus, thank goodness you're here!" McGonagall said as soon she saw Snape, her hand over her heart. She, Sprout, and Quirrell had just laid the girl in a hospital bed and the school nurse was flitting about, gathering supplies to dress the large gaping gash that was still oozing bright red blood. Her saturated robes were now dripping onto the crisp white linens underneath her.

"Didn't anyone think to slow the bleeding?" Snape spat immediately, and then he rushed forward, as Quirrell had his hands on the unconscious girl and was starting to pull back the clothing that was obstructing a clear view of the wound. A logical next step to the patient's care, but Snape didn't want his hands on her in this state. "Let me do it!" he snarled, pushing the other professor out of the way, and started yank Cassie's tattered robes away from her neck and chest. He recognized instantly that the lacerations there had been made with a spell, and rather intentionally.

"W-we did, S-severus," Quirrell replied, taking a step back and clasping his hands in front of his chin, looking like a lost puppy. "W-we slowed it r-right away - "

"There was a lot of blood," McGonagall said grimly, and Madam Pomfrey was now handing Snape gauze and elixirs, pointing and directing him, pulling him away from any attempts at conversation. She and the staff members worked in near silence for several minutes before they were satisfied that they had stabilized her, and then Snape finally felt somewhat calm enough to pull up a chair beside her bed. He sat in silence for a few moments, leaning forward with his elbows on the mattress, his face resting in his folded hands.

"What happened?" he asked finally, his voice low and silky, as he was trying to keep from erupting right then, with all of the onlookers nearby. The professors that had gotten Cassie back to the castle filled him in on what they knew, and then the Weasley boy spoke up. Snape had nearly forgotten he was still there.

"I'll send an owl to my parents," he said assuredly, as if that were the most important thing in the world at the moment, and turned to leave, and Snape snapped his fingers to stop him.

"You will do no such thing!" he snapped, "As they are _not_ her family. And I will remind you, Weasley, that even though you are a prefect, that you will _not_ run around blabbing to the rest of your brothers about this. Do you understand me?"

"But - "

"Five points from Gryffindor! And if any other students find out, I'll be blaming you and taking more! Now leave!"

Percy left without another word, and McGonagall turned to argue, but Snape was ready for her. "The last thing she needs is everyone flapping their gums and trying to get a look at her while she's lying here unconscious!"

"Severus, they're going to find out sooner or later, there's no need to be cruel to Percy, that entire family has always had her best interest at heart!" McGonagall said sternly.

"Regardless, the Malfoys need to be sent an owl before anyone else," Snape said. "If the Weasleys find out before Lucius, do you realize the shit storm he'll rain down on this place?"

"Yes, yes, always have to keep Lucius' ego in mind," McGonagall said, rolling her eyes. "Don't worry, I'll get an owl sent straight away. Shall I send one to Andromeda and Ted Tonks as well?"

Snape knew Lucius and Narcissa would hate it, but if Cassie were awake, she would loathe the fact that they were even having to take the time to think about it. "Do it."

The Deputy Headmistress left to do just that, and Sprout left to check on Theodore Quartermaine and made sure he was settled back in his common room. That left Snape with Quirrell, who was now standing in the corner and not looking at anything. Snape was about to tell him off when the rigid nurse beat him to it.

"Quirinus, you aren't doing anyone any good, now leave," she said, and he strode quickly through the double doors after nodding at her and Snape awkwardly.

Madam Pomfrey put up some privacy curtains around the two of them, and Snape stayed in the chair next to her bed for the next several hours. When it was well into the evening and the school nurse had retired to her rooms, Cassie finally started to stir. At first, she didn't seem to know what was going on and started to make little moaning noises.

"Cassie," Snape said softly, taking one of her hands in his and leaning forward. "Cassie, you're in the hospital wing at Hogwarts."

"What - " she said, and then her blue eyes fluttered open, taking a few moments to focus on the face that was above her. When she realized who it was, tears started to form. "Severus," she whispered. "Severus, I'm so sorry - "

"Don't," he said, a bit too harshly, and the girl started to cry, sobs making her entire body shake. Whether it was his hard tone, or the pain of incredibly deep cuts on her body, or the memory of four grown adults trying to murder her for no good reason, Snape didn't know, but right then he didn't care. Rather than inform Madam Pomfrey that Cassie was awake like he had promised, he decided to keep these moments between the two of them private. He gently nudged her over, making room for himself beside her in the narrow hospital bed, and then pulled her against his chest. She continued to sob, and he wrapped his long arms around her, trying his hardest to make her feel as safe as he could right then.

He coaxed some food into her, made her drink some elixirs to help her replenish her lost blood, and then finally got up to inform the nurse that the patient had woken up. He wanted to give her a Dreamless Sleep Potion to ensure she could continue to get some rest, and she agreed to take it only after he reassured her that he was going to leave to speak with Dumbledore, and then would come right back. He stayed by her side to make sure she was asleep once again, and then he made his way to the Headmaster's office.

Snape wasn't surprised that the Headmaster appeared to be expecting his arrival. When he entered, he was seated behind his desk calmly, watching him with interest, nothing out of the ordinary.

"You've been informed of what's happened, I presume?" Snape opened with. He didn't sit, but rather, started to pace. He had stayed subdued in the hospital wing, but he was used to showing his full range of emotions in this office. And he had some energy to let loose, now.

"I've been communicating back and forth with the Ministry ever since Miss Black's been back at the castle," Dumbledore replied quietly.

"The Ministry?" Snape asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. "What have they got to do with anything?"

"It seems Fudge is requesting an emergency hearing day after tomorrow."

"A hearing? For what?"

Dumbledore looked at Snape for a few moments before responding, seeming to mull over his next choice of words. "To determine whether or not Miss Black has any guilt in this situation."

Snape could feel the steady beat of heart pounding against his chest, and he felt like his blood was coming to a boiling point at the mere thought. "Guilt?! GUILT!" He shouted. He turned around, grabbed the nearest knickknack he could get his hands on, which happened to be a large bronze bowl full of some teeth-rotting Muggle candy, and hurled it across the room. The loud crashing noise it made gave him little satisfaction. "She almost gets her throat sliced open by a group of incompetent aspiring vigilantes, and she has to be put on trial in front of a bunch of mouth-breathing, fear-mongering politicians?!"

"Severus, all four of her attackers are currently in St. Mungo's. Much of the community already fears what she could do if she chooses, I don't have to point out to you that there doesn't have to be much fuel added to the fire before panic breaks loose."

"They fail to realize that she held back! That with what raw power she possesses, she could have just incapacitated them without a second thought!"

"Unfortunately, for most, that is not a comforting thought," Dumbledore replied, giving a small sigh. "The Ministry very well might decide that she used too much force, that it was not necessary to defend herself - "

"So they're the victims in this!" Snape roared. "They should be rotting in Azkaban! Better yet!" he said, and this time, when he threw a grey mortar, it flew so near to Fawkes' cage that it made him squawk in annoyance, "I'D LIKE TO SEE THEIR HEADS ON SPIKES!"

Dumbledore, having seen Snape in this state numerous times over the years, stayed silent and let him simmer, choosing to pop a lemon drop into his mouth. When it looked like the younger wizard was done throwing his possessions around, he decided to speak again.

"Severus, why don't you have a seat?"

"No!"

"As refreshing as it is to see you care about someone this much," Dumbledore said evenly, "I'd like to remind you that we have other matters to be concerned about this term. We can't lose sight of them even with all of this."

"Dumbledore," Snape growled, his tone back its dangerous inflection, "Are you already trying to turn the conversation back to Potter? Like I'd forgotten somehow?"

"Yes. Potter, and the stone, and the matter of keeping an eye on someone - "

"Enough, Dumbledore. I don't need reminders, like a child!"

"Good. I only bring it up, because I thought you would request to go along to the Ministry with Miss Black."

"Of course I should accompany her!" Snape spat. "You're suggesting I stay here?"

"Yes, I am requesting that you stay here, where you are needed, Severus," Dumbledore said, and Snape glared at him.

"She is going to need me with her _there,_ Dumbledore, it's for one day!"

"I will be sending the Deputy Headmistress in my place, who is more than capable of handling the situation on her own. I'm sure Arthur Weasley will be more than happy to go along, as long as Lucius Malfoy will allow it, and Lucius himself has already expressed a strong desire to have this resolved as quickly as possible. He will be attending the meeting as well."

"You've been talking to him, but he hasn't bothered to show up here and see his niece yet?" Snape said and shook his head, not feeling surprised at all. "So you're going to leave this in the hands of Lucius Malfoy, who has no interest in Cassie's well being whatsoever?"

"While Lucius' motives are purely selfish, he wants her name cleared so he won't be guilty by association. And he has the ear of the Minister. Not an ideal situation, but he'll be granted entry to the meeting guaranteed, and we'll accomplish the same goal," Dumbledore replied, and Snape let out a growl of frustration.

"She won't understand, Dumbledore," Snape said finally. "She's had enough people abandon her over the years."

"So explain it to her," the Headmaster replied with a twinkle in his eyes.

* * *

Cassie woke up in the early hours of Sunday morning, and the first thing she did was frantically look for Snape. When she saw his sleeping form in the chair next to her bed, she immediately began to calm, and her pale features broke into a smile as she watched him. He looked so peaceful as he slumbered, a state she didn't see on him often.

She debated letting him sleep, but having him just near her wasn't enough right then, so she reached out to touch his knee lightly. "Severus," she whispered. He stirred, and she whispered his name again. This time, he awakened fully, and he immediately came to the side of the bed.

"How do you feel?" he asked quietly, perhaps because, like her, he didn't want Madam Pomfrey to disturb their peace quite yet. "Are you in pain?"

"I'm fine," Cassie said truthfully, and she gestured for him to come to her. He hesitated, but only briefly, and she scooted over, letting him squish his tall frame into the narrow bed once again. She laid her head on his chest, letting her arm lay lazily across his torso. She winced a bit, as the position put some pressure on her wounds, but she didn't care.

"An owl has informed me that you'll be having some visitors this morning," Snape said. "Your aunt and uncle."

"Oh," Cassie said, rather disinterested because she didn't care to see anyone else at the moment. "Did you have a good night?"

"It was fine," he said quickly, and she knew instantly that something was amiss. Without further formalities, he informed her of the 'meeting' at the Ministry that was going to be taking place on Monday. She became enraged, and he encouraged her to remain calm; what made her even more upset, was that he had delivered the news in an even manner, making her think that he wasn't bothered by the situation at all.

"Of course I'm angry as well!" he hissed in her ear, still managing to keep his volume at a whisper. "This whole situation makes me want to curse everyone involved!" The confession made her feel a bit better. That was until he told her that he wouldn't be accompanying her to the trial.

"Move!" she said suddenly, sitting up in the bed, and he gave her a surprised look.

"Cassie," he said with a warning in his voice. He was trying to keep the fact that they had been in bed together quiet, understandably, and clamored out rather quickly, safely returning to the spot in the chair, before anyone came to investigate the abrupt change in conversation. "I have reasons!"

"Oh, you do, do you!" she said haughtily. "I don't care to hear them, actually - "

"You do, you stupid girl!"

"Now, what is the meaning of this?" came Madam Pomfrey's voice. The matron, overhearing the arguing, had stuck her head into the privacy curtains. "My patient is awake, and it doesn't sound like she's very relaxed. Do I need to ask her head of house to _leave?"_

"Maybe you do," Cassie said, but Snape shot her a look.

"No, Poppy. Everything is fine. If she doesn't calm down, I'll force-feed her a calming elixir."

"Now, Professor Snape, that's now how I do things in my ward!" the nurse scolded, and Cassie snorted, trying not to laugh because now she could tell Snape was trying his hardest to refrain from snapping at the nurse.

"Everything's fine, Madam Pomfrey. We're just having a little exchange of opinion," Cassie said, and after a final stern look, the nurse left them alone again. "Fine, Severus. You have reasons. Let's hear them."

" _Good_ reasons."

"I'll be the judge of that."

He told her about the Sorcerer's Stone, about how Dumbledore had moved it to the school to keep it safe; about his promise to Dumbledore to help keep an eye on Harry Potter. Those were just two things he had intended to keep in the back of his mind at the start of the school year, but now with Cassie's dream intruder, the attempts at someone trying to read her mind while she went about the castle, and now the unicorn blood they had seen, Snape told her that knew something was brewing.

"What does Dumbledore think?" she asked finally.

"He's asked me to keep an eye on Quirrell."

"I knew there was something off with him!" Cassie said. "So why even keep him here? Why not sack him?"

"Dumbledore has a certain way of doing things. If Quirrell thinks no one suspects him then he'll be less dangerous for the time being, assuming he's the culprit."

"Okay. I still don't get why you can't come to the trial. Why can't the other teachers keep an eye on Potter and make sure the stone is safe?"

"Because the other teachers don't know everything that we know."

Cassie sighed. "Am I supposed to feel privileged with this information?"

Snape was about to answer when Madam Pomfrey's face poked back into the curtains. "Are you up for more visitors, dear?"

Cassie looked over at Snape, then to the nurse. "I suppose I don't have a say at the moment, do I?" She sat up straighter in bed, suddenly aware of how unkempt she looked. Fully expecting to see the snobbish faces of Lucius and Narcissa come through the curtains next, she was overjoyed to see that instead, Andromeda and Ted were the ones that had come calling.

"Aunt Dromeda! Uncle Ted!" Cassie exclaimed, and she was about to stand, but her aunt started to fuss.

"Don't you dare get up!" Andromeda said, and rushed over, bending down to give her niece a big squeeze. "Oh, I'm sorry, I'm not hurting you, am I?"

"No!" Cassie said, wincing, and then Ted came over, hugging her a bit less enthusiastically, having seen her face when his wife had hugged her.

"I wasn't expecting you two," Cassie said. She was grinning ear to ear, especially when she saw that Snape had gotten up, giving up his seat to Andromeda, and pulled over another chair for Ted. Then without a word, he strode over to the other side of the room, suddenly in conversation with Madam Pomfrey. Cassie made sure to catch his eye before continuing with her aunt and uncle; she knew he must have been responsible for contacting them because there was no way that the Malfoys had done it.

"Well, we couldn't stay away, knowing what had happened," Andromeda said, and Cassie said that her aunt was sniffling and had tears forming in her eyes. "The audacity of it all, Cassie, I'm so sorry. We couldn't believe it!"

"No doubt, those bastards will get put away in Azkaban," Ted said, sounding rather confident, and Cassie wanted to believe him right then. Part of her wished she didn't know about the impending trial just yet.

"Well, actually..." Cassie started, and she repeated what Snape had informed her of not minutes before, of her appointment with the Ministry the next day, of how they wanted to be sure she wasn't the guilty party in the attack, to make sure she wasn't dangerous. After she had finished, her aunt and uncle looked dumbfounded, and then Andromeda finally let her tears start to fall.

"That's it!" she cried, grabbing her husband's hand. "I'm done with this. We can't let this keep happening to her, Ted."

Cassie looked between the two of them, utterly confused. "Aunt Dromeda, what - "

"The life you've lived, and we've so wanted to be there for you more, sweetie, we have, but my sister and that snake of a husband!" Andromeda said, nearly choking on her words. Cassie looked to her uncle for clarification.

"Lucius," he said quietly. "He's made threats to us, over and over, that if tried to be move involved with you he'd curse us, or have my job, or frame me and have me sent to Azkaban - "

"What?" Cassie hissed.

"And of course, we'd have you over for visits, but then we'd get the nasty messages and that would be the end of that," Andromeda said. "But no more, if Molly and Arthur Weasley can stand up to him, then why not us?"

Cassie hadn't even noticed that Snape had come back over now.

"What are you three discussing?" Snape said in a low voice, placing his hand on Cassie's shoulder protectively. "She has _enough_ on her mind as it is, she doesn't need family drama to worry about now - "

"Oh, shut up, Severus!" Cassie said, looking up at him. "Like you haven't helped with the pile-on of stress this morning?"

"I was offering you an explanation - "

Just then, a high pitched squeal interrupted them, as Molly and Arthur Weasley had walked into the ward, and Molly was approaching Cassie's bed at a jog with her arms extended in front of her, ready for a hug. Cassie completely forgot why she was starting to feel the ball of anger rising in the pit of her stomach, and was trying to stand again to greet the newcomers, but Snape would have none of it; his hand still on her shoulder, he shoved her back down forcefully.

"You. Need. Your. Rest," he said through gritted teeth. Cassie barely registered what he had said, and was now engulfed of the warm embrace of Molly Weasley. Ted and Arthur were enthusiastically shaking hands and exchanging pleasantries, and Andromeda, happy to see Cassie looking so pleased, was wiping tears off of her now smiling face. Madam Pomfrey, on the other hand, was now frantically counting heads, because she was sure that they had surpassed the maximum allowed number of visitors, and she would have none of it, thank you very much.

"Too many!" she said, but no one could hear her over the voices. Just as she approached the bed to get everyone's attention, the double doors opened again, and Percy, Fred, George, and Ron came in.

"Weasley!" Cassie overheard Snape snarl, and he was looking at Percy.

"Wasn't me, Professor!" Percy said. "My parents told 'em, honest!"

Snape left then, mumbling something to Cassie about a Weasley-fest, and she knew that this was just too cheerful of a room now for his taste. She enjoyed her time with her adoptive family and her aunt and uncle, and for a solid hour, she forgot about the unpleasantness that would be the next day.

That was, until, the doors opened again. This time, two platinum-haired individuals came through, and when they did, they immediately stopped short, taking a moment to survey the situation. Lucius, in particular, looked like he was smelling something particularly unpleasant, and Narcissa looked like she was going to be sick when her eyes fell upon her disowned sister. Cassie wasn't sure the last Narcissa and Andromeda had been in the same room together, and now she almost felt guilty for this tense situation.

She wished Snape had stayed. Even though she had a room full of people that supported her with her right now, he was still the one that she looked to when she needed to find her bravery. But when she looked at Lucius' smug expression, she reminded herself that yesterday, when she had fought off four grown wizards by herself, she had found that bravery on her own.

The ward, which seconds ago had been full of laughter and buoyant conversation, had fallen silent. This time, when Cassie went to stand from the hospital bed, no one stopped her.

"I don't recall giving any of these people permission to visit you," Lucius said, his eyes traveling around the room, his nose high in the air. "I ought to complain to the Board of Governors, Dumbledore shouldn't have allowed this to happen!"

"I'm fine, thanks for noticing," Cassie said.

"Of course you're fine. I hear you put four people in St. Mungo's. It's all over the Daily Prophet, which is why we have a little trip to the Ministry tomorrow, in fact," Lucius said, taking a few long strides closer to the bed, cane in hand. "So you ought to address me with some respect, girl."

"Or what?" Cassie challenged. Oh boy, did she wish Snape was here.

"Enough with the threats, Malfoy," Arthur said, taking a step forward, putting himself between him and Cassie.

"I don't recall speaking to you," Lucius said, raising an eyebrow. "Bothered to put on a set of clean robes, I see. Step up from when you come to work."

Molly raised her wand, and Cassie immediately placed a hand on her wrist, gently bringing her arm back down.

"It's not worth it," Cassie murmured to her. "You never answered me, Uncle. Or what, if I don't treat you with respect?" The whole room was looking at Lucius now, waiting to see if he had something substantial to say, or was full of hot air.

"The Minister was rather rattled by this whole incident, Cassiopeia. He's rather frightened of your abilities, I'm afraid to admit," he said, and now Ted was visibly shaking, he looked so angry. Cassie knew what Lucius was doing; he hated everyone in this room and was trying to get all of them riled up. If he could get any one of them to try to curse him, then he could use his political ties to get them into trouble and maybe put them away. But she wasn't going to play his game.

"I need everyone to leave," she said. "Just so I can speak with my aunt and uncle, please." After some quiet protests and a lot of glaring aimed at the Malfoys, everyone complied, going to stand out in the corridor, and Madam Pomfrey went into her rooms, satisfied once again with the number of visitors. "So what was that? You're going to threaten to have Fudge put me in Azkaban, Uncle?"

"Now why would you think that?" Lucius said innocently, and Cassie scoffed.

"Why are you even here?"

"We wanted to check up on you," Narcissa said, speaking for the first time. She rarely contributed to Lucius' schemes, but Cassie hated her for going along with it silently, either way.

"Well, I'm fine. As you see, I've been checked up on, maybe I should have just had Arthur send you an owl or something - "

"And how _dare_ you allow my blood traitor sister to come here, of all people," Narcissa said, her demeanor suddenly changing, and Cassie looked at her in surprise. Over the years, she had rarely heard her aunt speak of her sister, and now hearing her speak with such venom caught her off guard even knowing their history.

"How _dare_ I? _How dare you!"_ Cassie retorted, taking a step towards her aunt, and the look on her face must have communicated her seriousness, because Narcissa was suddenly submissive, stepping backward. "I found out today that my aunt and uncle _wanted_ to be in my life more, but they were _threatened_ by the likes of you two! I don't know why I was so surprised! You two really are scum, aren't you!"

"Cassie, stop now, or - " Lucius began, and Cassie turned to him.

"Or what? You'll have me thrown in Azkaban, Uncle? Please, do it! Maybe, I'll volunteer to drink a little Veritaserum at the little meeting tomorrow! I have nothing to hide!" Lucius flinched when she said this because he wasn't expecting it at all, and Cassie barked out a laugh. "Maybe we can share a cell, hmm?"

"You little brat," Narcissa whispered. "He is going to _help_ you tomorrow!"

"You're right, Aunt Cissy, he is," Cassie said. "Because he wants my name cleared so he can go on looking like Saint Lucius Malfoy, who rescued and somehow raised Lord Voldemort's feral daughter into the harmless witch that she is. If they only knew that he constantly encourages her to be the next Dark Lord, wouldn't that be something?"

Lucius was looking around the room now, obviously hoping no one could overhear them. " _Stop!"_ he demanded.

"That's right, you'll stop," Cassie said. "If I ever hear that you threaten Andromeda or Ted again, I won't give a shit if I ruin Draco's life by handing you over."

Lucius and Narcissa didn't have much to say to her after that, leaving the ward rather quickly. "See you tomorrow!" Cassie called in a fake cheery voice, and then the little party with the Weasleys and the Tonks' resumed. Right then, the only thing she had to feel bad about, was for stressing out Madam Pomfrey.


	9. The Ministry

Cassie would have been more than happy for her visit with the Tonks' and the Weasleys to go well into the night, but Madam Pomfrey was already seeming to be at her breaking point when dinner was brought to the hospital wing. Finally, when a Hufflepuff fourth year was brought in after being hit with a hex that made him produce rather excessive quantities of mucus and saliva, did the nurse send all of Cassie's visitors on their way for the night. Their sudden departure from the large ward made her feel lonely, but she was incredibly grateful for the time with them nonetheless. But now she was alone with her thoughts, and her stomach began to roll over as she began to wonder about what the next day had in store for her. She almost wished someone had thought to bring her some homework to do.

She rolled onto her side, readying herself to try and get some much-needed rest, listening to Madam Pomfrey fuss over the boy that was gurgling out his replies to her questions as body fluids continued to pour out of his face. She wondered if Draco had done it to him, as the cruel hex very much seemed like something he would inflict on someone, but then she realized that he probably wasn't capable of such a spell yet. It gave her a bit of comfort. Still, she couldn't help but worry over her younger cousin's future, having just had such an unpleasant interaction with Lucius that day. It was devastating, learning what he had done to Andromeda and Ted, and yet it made her feel like an idiot for not figuring it out sooner. And Tonks, what would she do if she found out? Surely, she'd do something rash, perhaps lash out, jeopardize her future as an Auror after cursing the Malfoys, Cassie couldn't let that happen...

No, she couldn't worry about all that now. She had to sleep. Tomorrow was a big day, she had to have her wits about her. She had the Ministry breathing down her neck. But would she be able to sleep, with all these thoughts in her head? Surely not.

Now, she found herself wishing Snape was in the cramped hospital bed with her once again, the two of them sharing the tiny space, his arm wrapped around her protectively. The simple gesture made her feel incredibly safe and cherished, something that was hard to come by as of late. It was odd to think that now she knew what his scent was like when she had her face pressed up against his chest, the luxurious feeling of his robes on her cheek as his chest moved with each breath.

Cassie wondered what he was doing, rather than being with her right at that very moment. Perhaps he was supervising detention, or patrolling the halls, making sure nothing was amiss. Maybe he was in the Forbidden Forest, looking for clues of another unicorn being injured, putting himself in the path of whatever dangerous thing had injured the first one.

Great. Now, she was missing him, _and_ worrying about him. That would help her get to sleep.

The nurse gave her a flask of Dreamless Sleep Potion after she was done dealing with her other patient, and after some meditation and extra effort to get a certain Potions Master out of her head, Cassie was finally able to drift off to a peaceful slumber. She woke up very early the next morning, and unable to get back to sleep, she started to put on a fresh set of uniforms and get her day started.

"Miss Black!" came Madam Pomfrey's hurried voice, and Cassie took a deep breath, knowing she should be nice to the uptight nurse. "What are you doing?"

"I was intending to go to breakfast," Cassie replied, giving her a small smile. "I'm feeling much better."

"No, no, you must stay here, until someone fetches you, dear."

"Why?"

"I have direct instructions, Miss Black."

With no other explanation offered to her, Cassie found herself lying on her bed for the better part of an hour, staring at the ceiling as she waited for the next step. Breakfast was brought to her, and then finally, her escorts came in the form of McGonagall and Snape. Familiar butterflies began to dance in her belly when she saw her head of house, and she had to force herself to keep from grinning ear to ear, even with the anticipation of what was to come.

"Good morning, Miss Black," McGonagall said, giving her a small nod.

"Good morning, Professor McGonagall," Cassie said, and then she turned to Snape. "Good morning, Professor Snape."

"Miss Black." His expression seemed troubled, and for the first time that morning, she felt incredibly anxious.

"Professor Snape and I will be taking you to entrance gates, where Arthur Weasley will be waiting with a Portkey," Professor McGonagall started to explain. Cassie, who was still trying to figure out the grim look on Snape's face, had to make a conscious effort to pull her attention away from him so she could pay attention to what the Head of Gryffindor was saying. "You, Mr. Weasley, and I will take the Portkey to London, where we will use the visitor's entrance to go into the Ministry, and then we shall meet Mr. Malfoy once we are inside."

"My uncle couldn't be bothered to traipse through Hogsmeade, eh?" Cassie asked, scoffing, not at all surprised that Lucius considered the small wizarding village beneath him. McGonagall and Snape exchanged glances. "What?" she asked, wondering why they were acting so strange.

"Miss Black, I feel we should inform you," McGonagall started slowly, and she had an apologetic tone to her voice. "When we get to the entrance gate, it is likely that there will be a crowd."

Cassie looked between the two professors, not quite understanding what the Deputy Headmistress was getting at. "A crowd?" Neither one spoke for a moment, and then Cassie looked pointedly at Snape, waiting for more explanation.

"A mob," he said bluntly, and McGonagall clicked her tongue in disapproval.

"Excuse me?" Cassie asked.

"I'm sorry, Cassie. But apparently, it was all over the _Daily Prophet_ , and now people are concerned over the safety of the students - " McGonagall started.

"The _students?"_ Cassie spat. "First some idiots are worried I'm going to attack Harry Potter, and now it's all the freaking _students_ that I'm going to harm?"

"You have to understand, Cassie, that once it's in the _Prophet_ \- "

"I don't have to understand anything!" Cassie said, and she stormed past the two of them. "Let's just get on with it!"

She walked through the corridor at a hurried pace, and although she was appreciative to have McGonagall's support, at that time she wished it had just been herself and Snape as they made their way towards the entrance hall so she could speak her mind. But that wasn't the case, so she walked in strained silence, wishing more than anything that she could take his hand, even link her pinky finger with his, just so she could receive some physical form of comfort from him before they were separated for the day.

The thought came into her mind that there was always the possibility that she'd be thrown into Azkaban today. It made her want to turn around, jump into his arms, cover him with kisses. But that would get him sacked, and she was confident that Dumbledore wouldn't let her get put away. So she restrained herself.

Once they neared the entrance hall, Cassie noticed eyes on her, kids stopping mid-conversation to stop and stare as the trio moved past. She tried her best to ignore them and kept moving at a steady pace. She breathed a bit easier once they were outside, as there were only a few students out there, but once they neared the gates, she began to hear the murmurs of a waiting crowd. She stopped walking, not ready to come into view of them just yet.

"What if someone attacks?" Cassie asked her professors quietly.

"Aurors are present," Snape replied, and the severity of the situation hit Cassie then. This wasn't just ridiculous now; it was dangerous. He seemed to sense here sudden apprehension, and placed his hands on her shoulders, giving them a reassuring squeeze. "I'm sorry I can't come with you," he said quietly.

"I'll be fine," Cassie said, resisting the urge to place her hand over his, to turn around and wrap her arms around his torso. "I'm in good hands." She was putting on a brave face, saying what he wanted to hear, because more than anything, she wanted him to be there with her.

"We should go," McGonagall said quietly. "In case there are delays."

Cassie and McGonagall started forward, leaving the Potions Master behind, and Cassie turned to look at him one last time, giving him a nervous smile before turning to face the waiting horde. He looked unsure, an expression that Cassie rarely saw on him, making her feel uneasy herself.

The two witches finally came upon the magnificent wrought iron gates, a sight that Cassie usually welcomed, and was greeted by numerous wizards and witches with angry faces. Shouting instantly erupted, and Aurors and Ministry workers that had been stationed in front of the gates began to use their wands to put up barriers, keeping anyone from getting too close to where Arthur stood, a single crinkled soda can in his hand. He gestured for them to come to him quickly, and McGonagall started to open the gates, encouraging Cassie to sneak through the opening as soon as she could fit.

"My son is in there!" a woman screeched, and one man yelled, "Take her out of Hogwarts, or I'll take my kids home today!"

"Save Harry Potter!"

"The Dark Lord will rise through her!"

Cassie tried her best not to hear any more specific words being said, but she couldn't help it. It was incredibly aggravating, and as soon as she got through the gate, she locked eyes with Arthur.

"Here we are, dear," he said, and McGonagall stood next to her and put her arm around her as soon as she got the gates closed again.

"And on the count of three - " Arthur said, "One, two, three!"

Just as he said three and they touched the can, a loud explosion had erupted and a lot of screaming had started; they were pulled by the Portkey just as it had started. Luckily, they had made it to their destination without being harmed, and the red telephone box was right in view once they had caught their footing. Cassie recognized it instantly, having been to the Ministry many times over the years with Lucius and Arthur.

"What happened?" Cassie asked breathlessly.

"I'm sure someone wanted to stop us from arriving," Arthur said, shaking his head. "No worries, they were expecting that sort of thing, I'm sure. Now let's get inside before there's another gathering," he said, ushering her towards the guest entrance. How the Ministry had kept a mob from forming there, Cassie wasn't sure, but she was more than grateful to complete this part of the trip without an audience.

They descended into the atrium of the Ministry, and the familiar colors of the dark wood floors and light blue ceiling that surrounded Cassie were little comfort as they made their way to the security desk. In previous visits to the large establishment, she was used to witches and wizards bustling about and going about their business without paying much attention to her. But today, many were stopping to get a good look at her as if she were on display.

"Don't pay any attention, Cassie," McGonagall muttered to her as one witch was standing right in front of them, her mouth agape as she stood with a large stack of parchment in her hands.

"Right," Cassie replied. She had to push her way past, and the witch let out a tiny whimper, nearly dropping everything that was in her arms.

"You are causing quite the commotion here," came the lazy drawl of Lucius Malfoy, and Cassie had to keep from groaning in disgust.

"Hello, Uncle," she said, taking her wand back from Eric the security wizard.

"Niece," he said, nodding once. "Weasley, your services are no longer needed here. But I hear there's some Muggle vomit receptacle that needs your attention, so you'd better see to that instead."

"Malfoy, I'm seeing her to the courtroom, and there's nothing you're going to say that's going to make me do anything else," Arthur said evenly, taking a deep breath.

"Weasley, the goal of today is to make her look _good_ in front of the Wizengamot, not associate her with a family of poverty-stricken, unwashed ginger - " Lucius started, but he stopped speaking when McGonagall stepped forward, sticking her pointer finger in the blond wizard's face.

"You. Will. Stop. _Now!_ " she said, her voice quiet, but incredibly audible as she scolded the grown wizard. "Or I _will_ drag you by the ear to the hearing, kicking and screaming, do you hear me, Lucius Malfoy?"

"Yes, Professor McGonagall," Malfoy said, seemingly reverting to his Hogwarts years in an instant as he replied, and Cassie bit back a laugh.

They made their way to the courtroom without another word, and when they were outside the doors, Lucius finally spoke again, clearing his throat before he spoke.

"You are in a favorable position," he said to Cassie, and she nodded, feeling her breakfast rising in her stomach as she took a deep breath. "I have talked the Minister into considering this as a 'meeting' rather than a hearing or trial. The Wizengamot is using today to determine whether or not a trial is warranted in the near future. Fudge is taking into account that Minister Bagnold had a favorable opinion of you when she left office, and of course, you have myself, and uh - " he cleared his throat again, "Weasley, speaking highly of you."

"And there's Headmaster Dumbledore and all of the other professors, of course," McGonagall reassured Cassie.

"Okay," said Cassie, but she, in fact, did not feel okay.

"You will not speak unless spoken to," Lucius reminded her.

"Yes, Uncle."

"You will remain poised, and polite, and act like the proper witch you were raised to be, although we know that's now how you turned out - "

" _Malfoy!"_

_"_ I digress."

But her uncle's insult didn't register. Cassie was feeling panic-stricken. It was time to enter the courtroom. Arthur was muttering something kind and encouraging, giving her a tight hug and saying he wished he was allowed to go in there with her, and she plastered a fake smile on her face, trying to make the worried look on his face go away, and then McGonagall was steering her to where she needed to go.

It was into the dungeon courtroom, to sit in a chair with chains covering the armrests, poised to restrain her without a moment's hesitation if need be. Of course, she shouldn't have been so worked up, and she was silently scolding herself; she had been in the very same chair during her second year. Minister Millecent Bagnold had requested a hearing after she had been taken from Hogwarts by a group of Death Eaters in training and offered their loyalty. She had been rescued by Dumbledore and a few of the other professors, but at the time, none of them had been quite sure of her loyalties. Bagnold, however, had been fair and kind.

Cassie had only interacted with Fudge a few times since he had become Minister a year ago, but he had always struck her as skittish and insecure. Of course, knowing that he listened to Lucius with so much certainty made her assume he was incredibly stupid as well. But for today, listening to Lucius might work in her favor.

"Cassiopeia Elladora Black," came the voice of Cornelius Fudge from somewhere in the benches high above her, and Cassie looked up to see the figures dressed in plum robes. "Are you ready?"

"Yes, Minister Fudge," she said, her voice not sounding confident at all, and she hoped they could hear her.

"Good. Who do you have with you?"

"My uncle, Lucius Malfoy," she replied, this time, finding more of her voice. "And Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall." She found herself looking around the room a bit, finding the stern faces of the Wizengamot a bit intimidating, and then in a bench further away from them saw a gnarled face with unkempt, long hair and a swiveling, unnatural eye that was moving quickly about the room, and then next to him was a young witch with bright green hair -

Cassie had to clap her hands over her mouth to stifle herself because she almost yelped in surprise; it was Tonks!

"Miss Black, is something the matter?" one of the uptight witches in plum robes said, sounding rather perturbed, and Cassie shook her head quickly. Tonks smiled widely, giving a small wave, and suddenly the magical eye of the wizard seated next to Tonks pivoted towards her.

"No, no ma'am," Cassie said. "Just nerves is all." Having her cousin there made her feel giddy, although it wasn't making her feel any less on edge at the moment.

"Alright then," the witch said, looking over at the minister, and they exchanged glances. Not good.

"Let's proceed," Fudge said. "The reason we are here, Miss Black, is because there are four people hospitalized at St. Mungo's as a result of your actions, and I'd like to get to the bottom of it at once." Cassie heard McGonagall snort loudly, but didn't say anything. "Now, the day of the incident, you were in Hogsmeade, is that correct?"

"Yes, Minister."

"And what was your purpose in the village that day?"

"My - my purpose?" she said, caught off guard at the question.

"Yes, girl. What were your intentions that day?"

"I, uh, I guess I didn't have any," she said, not sure what she was supposed to say. The scribe next to the minister was scribbling away furiously, and Cassie was feeling more and more nervous. "I mean, I just went there to pass the time, you know?"

"Pass the time until what?"

"Pardon me?"

She saw Fudge exchange glances with a member of his council again. Cassie swallowed hard.

"I just needed a break from studying, I suppose. I don't know, why else do students go to Hogsmeade?"

"I don't know, Miss Black, as I am asking _you."_

_Not a trial, my ass,_ she thought to herself. Thankfully, the Minister moved on.

"And who did you attend with?"

"Theodore Quartermaine."

"And what is your relationship with the young man?"

"We tutor together."

"You tutor?"

"Yes, Monday and Wednesday evenings."

"What kinds of things do you tutor?"

"Whatever the younger students bring to me," she said, and the Wizengamot members started to whisper among each other. Cassie looked to McGonagall, who shrugged slightly.

"Miss Black," said one wizard with a short goatee after a few minutes. "You say, in your own words, whatever they bring you. So does that mean, if a young student has a question about the Dark Arts, that you teach them about said magic?"

Cassie's mouth fell open. "I - what?"

"Miss Black, you said," the same wizard started again, but McGonagall was losing her patience.

"Now, see here, that is such an inappropriate, bizarre question, I don't even know where to begin!" she said shrilly, standing up from the chair she had been seated in.

"Mistress McGonagall, sit down - "

"That's _Deputy Headmistress_ , and I will sit down when I damn well please!" McGonagall remained standing. "This is not a trial, and I will not tolerate such idiotic questions again! We are here to find out what happened when I found my student bleeding out after she was ambushed, not what homework she helps younger students with! So get on with it!"

McGonagall sat down after that, and Cassie couldn't help but smile at her then. Lucius was pursing his lips together so hard that they were almost turning blue.

"Alright," Fudge said, sounding rather deflated. "Miss Black, what happened that day in Hogsmeade?"

The room went silent then. Cassie looked to Tonks for a last bit of courage, hoping that she could convince the Ministry that she was innocent in all of this, and her cousin was no longer beaming but looked rather earnest. The older wizard next to her still had his eyes locked on her, obviously just as interested to hear what she had to say.

So she took a deep breath, and recounted the story, about how she and Theodore were about to head back to Hogwarts, and then the four attackers appeared and said they couldn't let her go back there.

"And how did the boy escape the scuffle?"

"I told him to get out of there, and they said they didn't an issue with him, and let him run," Cassie said.

"That seems unlikely, if they were such an aggressive group as you say they were," Fudge said. "It doesn't add up."

"It wasn't so much aggressive, as much as they were determined to do what they thought was right," Cassie replied quietly. "Apparently he wasn't the threat."

"So were they doing what was right, Miss Black?" Fudge asked.

"Excuse me?" she asked, and Lucius let out a low hiss. She heard him but ignored the warning to keep her cool.

"Is there a need to protect the Potter boy from you?"

"The audacity!" McGonagall started. "How dare you - "

"No, Deputy Headmistress, there's where you are wrong!" Fudge said haughtily. "You can defend her all you want, and tell me up and down what a grand student she's been all these years, but the fact is, she put four grown wizards in the hospital, and there were no witnesses to tell me that it was warranted! Who's to say that she didn't just attack them out of pure boredom, hmm? Because she _can?_ "

"Minister Fudge, I assure you, my niece is not dangerous, I raised her myself ever since her mother went to Azkaban," Lucius said, now choosing to stand alongside McGonagall. The mention of Bellatrix got the other members of the council talking to one another, and the extra noise along with Lucius and Fudge now arguing was overstimulating to Cassie. The entire situation, made her want to scream 'screw you' to all of them and leave, and really she could and there was nothing any of them could do, but then she really would be in trouble, so she stayed in the chair that threatened to chain her down at any moment.

"You guarantee me, Lucius!" Fudge was suddenly yelling, "You _guarantee me,_ that one day she doesn't wake up and decide wants to follow in her father's footsteps, and then you can say that to me - "

Cassie could hear McGonagall yelling obscenities next to her, but the arguing around her was getting so loud she couldn't pick out individual sentences; her anger began to build, and she felt the ground underneath her rumble, and she knew she was the cause. The others were so heated in their arguments that they didn't even notice that the room was about to be destroyed if she didn't get her emotions in check.

While she slowly scanned the room for a source of calm, she locked eyes with the older, scarred wizard that was seated next to Tonks. At first, his appearance had shocked her, but now, he was the only peaceful force in the room for her.

She closed her eyes, inhaled deeply, let it out over a few seconds. Using the skills that she had practiced with Snape, she blocked out the noises around her, and with it, the stress that was aggravating her. The vibrations stopped, and only when she knew she could safely deal with the chaos that was going on in the room, did she dare open her eyes again.

When she did, the arguing was still taking place. But the wizard was still watching her carefully, and when she looked at him again, he gave her a small nod and a small smile, seeming to give her his silent praise for getting her emotions in check. Tonks was looking between the two of them, confused as to what had just happened.

The wizard with the false, spinning eye suddenly stood, and bellowed, "Enough!"

The room silenced, and Cassie was awed at the respect he commanded.

"You want answers? If the girl is agreeable, someone fetch a Pensieve, and we'll get to the bottom of it in a matter of minutes," he continued. He looked right at Cassie as if hers was the only permission needed for this plan, and she nodded enthusiastically. Two scribes immediately left to fetch what was needed, and Fudge sat with his arms folded across his chest like an angry toddler.

"Who is that?" Cassie whispered.

"Alastor Moody," McGonagall answered, and Cassie gasped.

"No!" She felt stupid for not figuring it out sooner. "So that means Tonks is learning from him? That's amazing!" She gave a thumbs up to her cousin, who returned it immediately. She hoped she would have a chance to talk to her when it was all said it done; she missed her terribly.

After the Pensieve was brought to the courtroom and Cassie voluntarily allowed her memories of the Hogsmeade attack to be placed in it, Moody, Fudge, and Amelia Bones all went into the memory together. As the experienced Auror said, the conclusion to what had happened was over in a matter of minutes, as it was hard to contest what happened when they could see it happen right before their very eyes. Cassie was a bit worried that Fudge would come back with accusing her of using excessive force, but he was rather tight-lipped after coming out of the memory, choosing instead to only mutter apologies and dismiss everyone rather quickly as soon as the three of them came out of it.

"That's it?" Cassie asked as the members of the Wizengamot started to disperse. "We're free to go?"

"Yes," Lucius said curtly, leaving without another word, obviously not wanting to be in the same room as a notorious Auror.

Cassie turned to see if Tonks was still in the room and let out a yelp of surprise when her cousin nearly knocked her off her feet, having just tackled her with a hug.

"Cass!" she cried. "I'm so happy for you!"

"Thanks for being here, you have no idea how much that means, Dora!" Cassie said, feeling tears form in her eyes. When they pulled out of the hug, Cassie felt a few fall down her face, and her cousin immediately went to wipe a few away.

"Oh, don't, Cass, or you'll make me cry, you will!" Tonks said.

"Don't mean to interrupt this little reunion," came Moody's gruff voice, and Cassie turned to shake his hand.

"Thank you, Mr. Moody, sir, so much, you saved my ass today!" she said.

"Yeah well," he said, and his magical eye was whirring about in every direction once again. "Better to keep you out of Azkaban, and let you finish your year at Hogwarts. You'd make a fine Auror, from what I saw in that Pensieve today."

McGonagall had walked up to them then, and placed her arm around Cassie's shoulders. "Yes, she will make an excellent one. The Ministry will be damn lucky to have her."

"That's as long as Fudge stops being afraid of her," Moody said rather ominously, and Cassie suddenly felt a bit forlorn.

"You mean, he can keep me from becoming one?"

"Oh, yes," Moody answered.

"Now, he'd be a fool to do anything of the sort!" McGonagall said earnestly. "You saw her in the Pensieve today, Alastor, she'd even be able to beat your record of catching dark wizards, and that's saying something!"

Moody was shaking his head. "Doesn't matter, Minerva. Minister is in charge." Tonks had grabbed Cassie's hand now and was giving her a firm squeeze, trying to make her feel better. "You heard me, girl. Keep your nose clean."

"What am I supposed to do? Let them kill me next time?"

"You know what I'm saying, kid. Keep that temper of yours in check. Good thing someone in your life already taught you some control or this whole room would have come tumbling down around us, eh?" Moody said, and McGonagall looked at him in surprise. Cassie's mind immediately went to Snape and her lessons with him.

"Yeah, you're right," she said.

"Keep up with 'em," Moody said. "And next time, when they try to kill you, dispatch 'em, do it calmly, and Fudge will have no reason to fear you."

Those were his parting words. Cassie had hoped that she would have more time with Tonks, but apparently, they had taken enough time off from their training for her meeting and had to get back at it. Arthur congratulated her enthusiastically, but briefly, as he had to get back to work, and then Cassie and McGonagall were headed back to Hogwarts. For safety, they were granted temporary access to use the Floo Network to go back to Hogwarts and were able to travel right back into McGonagall's office and avoid angry mobs and explosions altogether.

"Don't bother with classes or tutoring today," McGonagall said, immediately sitting down behind her desk. "If Severus won't write you an excuse note, I will."

"I don't think he'll have a problem with it," Cassie replied quietly.

"Are you alright, Cassie?"

"Yeah," she lied.

"Is it what Moody said?"

"Yes, and...I mean, it's everything. The Auror training, and Fudge, and the fact that there will be a 'next time' that someone tries to kill me."

"Well, Moody is rather pessimistic."

"Or maybe just realistic," Cassie said. "I mean, if everyone hates me, what's the point of being an Auror? Isn't that counterproductive?"

"Not everyone."

"Okay, the vast majority."

McGonagall was silent for a few moments, studying her. "It always saddened me, Cassie, that you felt the need to stifle your abilities, because of public perception. Like when I wanted you to start training to be an Animagus, and you didn't want to because you thought everyone would start assuming you were responsible for a disaster every time a dog was was spotted - "

"Because you know that's what would happen!"

"I'm not arguing that. I just wish you would do it anyway, everyone else be damned. Realize your true potential. Do what good you can behind the scenes, even if people are afraid of you. You can still be an Auror, even if people are afraid of the idea."

"Not if Fudge won't let me," Cassie said. "Anyway, thank you for everything, Professor, but I'm very tired - "

"Say no more. You can go."

Cassie made her way to the dungeons, intending to go to her dorm to rest, as she was exhausted. But somehow, she found herself going to the Potions classroom instead. She couldn't remember what Snape had on his schedule for Monday, and honestly she barely even knew what time it was right then. But she was happy to see that it was empty, and she went in, walking through it, and then went straight into Snape's office. He was nowhere to be seen, so she sat down at his desk. She didn't care if he'd be mad that she was sitting there. Even if all he did was yell at her, she'd be happy for that interaction.

She didn't know how long she was there because she fell asleep with her head on his desk. He woke her up by gently shaking her shoulder.

"Hey," she said, running a hand through her black locks, wiping her mouth in case she had been drooling. "Sorry, I didn't mean to sleep on your desk."

"That's the least of my worries," he said, and she smiled up at him. "How did it go?"

"Well," she said, standing up and straightening out her robes. "I'm not in Azkaban, so that's a start."

"Yes, I suppose so," he said.

"McGonagall is a beast," Cassie said. "You should have seen her put Fudge in his place. And Mad-Eye Moody, he's really a bad ass! I think I would have been screwed without him. He suggested that they put my memory of it in the Pensieve, and after that they didn't have much to say. And I got to see Tonks for a bit, so that was great."

Snape wasn't saying much, but was nodding. Cassie was watching him carefully but wasn't able to get a read on his mood. All she knew was that he was acting a bit odd, just standing by the door of his office and looking at her.

"So, how was your day, Severus?"

"What?"

"You're acting weird."

"Oh, shut up," he snapped, and then he left the room. Cassie raised an eyebrow and was about to follow him, when he strode back in, his arms full of stuff; he had two large bouquets of flowers, some letters, and a package wrapped in brown paper. "This all came for you."

"Oh," Cassie said as he set it all on his desk. The package was from the Weasleys, all scrumptious-looking baked goods along with a card. There was a bouquet of flowers and a card from Andromeda and Ted, which was incredibly sweet. And then Cassie discovered why Snape was acting so strangely. The second, and bigger of the two bouquets, was labeled from Charlie. He must have seen it.

Cassie set Charlie's flowers down, then shoved them aside. "They're daisies, not my favorite - " she started to say, but she was interrupted. Snape suddenly slammed his office door shut with a flick of his wand and locked it, taking the time to stuff his wand back into his pocket as came around the desk to join her. She squeaked in surprise as he grabbed her face in his hands, his lips crashing into hers forcefully. He nearly knocked her off balance as he pushed her backward into his desk, careful not to break the passionate kiss once.


	10. Later That Night

It was like they were continuing that first lascivious, fiery kiss they had first shared in Snape's office weeks ago. He had Cassie pressed up against the desk, his hips thrust forward to keep her pinned there. His eloquent hands were tangled in her mess of thick black hair as he fervently moved his lips against hers. Cassie, while caught off guard by his sudden decision to lock the rest of the world away and grab her without another word, wasn't complaining at this point. It was like she was a woman who had been starving for a month, and been offered the most delicious spread of delectable cuisine imaginable. She could barely contain herself as the Potions Master's tongue suddenly slipped into her mouth and started to massage hers. Without any objective, her hands slid under the black cloak that covered Snape's towering figure, encircling his torso and pulling him even closer, and she found herself wondering what his skin felt like under all those layers of robes.

His hands were still gripping her face, and Cassie was about to encourage him to move them elsewhere, every part of her body now screaming for his touch. They started to quickly descend her neck, her arms, her ribcage. Before she could register the array of warm tingles that his caresses were sending through her, he was gripping her backside, lifting her onto the desk. Cassie spread her legs and reached out for him, once again pulling him as close to her as she could. He bent down, this time with his lips meeting the soft flesh on the side of her neck, and her breath caught in her throat as he began to suck there lightly.

Cassie was almost completely lost in the moment, the worries of the day's events effectively melted away as the two of them continued their conquest, if it weren't for her recent memory of rejection that she couldn't fully push out of her mind. Even as Snape's hand cautiously move up her leg and threatened to disappear under the hem of her uniform skirt, Cassie couldn't help but worry what might set him off this time, what could completely derail their ardent advances and leave her feeling like a damn fool once again.

She tried to tell herself not to worry. They were in a different place now. He had made it pretty clear that he cared about her, even if he hadn't said it. And now he was bent over her, the weight of his lanky frame slowly pushing her down onto his desk, quills and books being knocked to the floor, and she was wrapping her legs around his waist, keeping him close to her, not giving him the chance to get up and walk away from her.

Snape's mouth was on hers again, his kisses growing deeper and more demanding by the second, and now Cassie was sure that his hand was under her skirt because she felt fingers dance at the edge of her panties. It sent delicious tingles up her spine, and wetness was now pooling between her legs. The hand stopped its advances there, seemingly just as sporadic as Cassie's mind was at the moment. It was now on top of her shirt, and she gasped into her professor's mouth as he lightly massaged her breast.

Their movements were playful, frantic, and a bit desperate. Both were thrilled to be partaking in their present activities, and also absolutely terrified at the same time.

" _Shit!_ " Snape spat, just as he started to roughly pull the buttons of Cassie's shirt open, and her heart dropped at the troubled tone in his voice.

"What is it, Severus?" she demanded, ready to argue, because this time, she wasn't just going to leave if he told her to.

"We have to stop," he said, the familiar phrase echoing in her mind. He started to push himself up from the desk.

"No!" Cassie said, reaching out to grab his forearm, "We don't, Severus, I don't know what keeps going through your head - "

"Cassie," Snape said, raising an eyebrow as if she were the most ridiculous girl in the world right then. "I have to supervise detention."

Cassie, who was relieved that he wasn't having another major mood swing like last time, was still not thrilled that their activities were coming to a skidding halt. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

"I'm not."

She unwrapped her legs from his torso and he stood, taking a few steps away from the desk. Cassie stayed lying on her back for a few moments, trying to catch her breath. "Can't you have someone else do it?"

"Do you realize how suspicious that would look? You're not in your common room, and then if I passed my duties off to another teacher - "

"Severus, no one gives a shit. If anything, they'd assume you were just comforting me after the crap I went through today!" She knew she looked ridiculous, with her thick hair disheveled, her top buttons torn open, her cheeks flushed as she sat up.

She realized at that moment that he must not have thought she looked ridiculous, because he was staring at her with his mouth slightly open. She blushed harder.

"I - " he started, possibly considering what she was saying. Then he shook his head. "No, I'm not risking it. It starts in ten minutes, it will be over in two hours - where are you going?"

Cassie had smoothed out her clothing as best she could and was striding towards the door, flowers and package in hand. At his question, she turned to look at him in surprise. "You have detention, so I'm leaving!"

"I didn't ask you to leave!" Snape looked perturbed at the very idea.

She was annoyed at how he was snapping at her but overjoyed that he wasn't using his prior engagements as a reason to get rid of her. "So I'm supposed to sit in your office?" she asked, wondering how she'd be able to survive two hours by herself in there, after doing all of _that_ with him.

"No," he said, grabbing her elbow and guiding her towards the back of his office. Suddenly they were standing in front of the door that led to his quarters. Cassie looked up at him in astonishment, as in all the years she had spent time with him outside of their academic relationship, she had never seen his living quarters at Hogwarts.

" _Ashwinder eggs,"_ Snape said without a moment's hesitation, and opened the door, leading Cassie across the threshold. She was touched that he felt comfortable enough to let her stay there without him. She had been to Spinner's End a few times, but never without him.

Cassie set down what was in her arms on his little dining room table, and turned back towards the Head of Slytherin, intending to exchange some sort of embrace. He backed up a few paces when she approached him.

"No," he said quickly, "Or there will be no hope of me leaving."

Cassie smiled, nodding in agreement. "So what do you want me to do while you're away, Severus?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. " _Not_ go through my personal belongings, for a start."

"Wouldn't dream of it," she said, and he sighed, obviously not feeling very confident that would be the case. He left without another word, and Cassie was alone in the professor's apartments. It consisted of a living area, which she was standing in, with a small fireplace, two armchairs, and a black leather love seat. Bookcases lined the walls, but there were no personal artifacts other than used texts, something that was reminiscent of Snape's home outside of the castle.

She lit a fire with a flick of her wand and sat in one of the chairs for a few minutes, before feeling brave enough to explore the rest of the little quarters. This felt like an intimate step and wasn't something that she wanted to take for granted. But curiosity eventually won out, and she ended up venturing into the bedroom, where a large four-poster with plush grey bedding sat empty. Her mind immediately began to play out many different scenarios that were very likely to take place, and she felt heat rise to her cheeks again.

The bathroom had an inviting looking tub, and feeling brave, she ended up taking a long, relaxing soak. His soap was musky, smelling of warm vanilla and amber, and she loved that her skin smelled like his after she was done. Not having clothing other than the Slytherin uniform she had worn that day, she decided to run the risk of aggravating Snape by opening the top drawer of his wardrobe. She helped herself to one of his grey nightshirts, which was a bit oversized on her. For simplicity's sake, she decided to forgo any sort of undergarments.

Cassie considered waiting for Snape on his bed, then decided that she'd let him invite her to it for the first time, hoping he wouldn't already be annoyed that she had used his bathtub and was wearing his pajamas. Instead, she picked out a rather ancient looking textbook on African medicinal elixirs and sat in front of the fire, trying to focus on something other than the fact that in less than an hour, he'd be back there with her.

Even though her entire purpose was to wait for him, she still jumped when she heard the door open. She shook slightly when she heard his heavy footsteps cross the threshold, the door close, and the lock click into place. Cassie stood, intending to place the tattered book back where she had found it, knowing he liked his collection organized.

"Hi," she greeted him breathlessly as she carefully put the text back, locking eyes with him. She watched as his black eyes moved down her entire body slowly, all the way down to the floor and then back up again.

"You certainly made yourself at home," he said curtly. She couldn't tell if he was pleased or repulsed by her current choice in clothing, the way he was looking at her. His mood had shifted in those brief hours since she had seen him, and maybe it was just having had to deal with students, but it was something she had worried about. Snape liked to overthink. She knew it was possible that he had sat at his desk the entire time, pretending to grade papers, when he was really convincing himself of all the reasons why the two of them being together would be a horrible idea.

"I thought that was the idea." Cassie sat back down in the chair she had been in while she had waited for him. She felt her emotional defenses going back up, not knowing what he was feeling.

He went to a cabinet near the bedroom door, pulled out a bottle of whiskey and two glass tumblers, pouring a small amount into both. "I'm surprised you didn't find this," he mused, crossing the living area to hand her a glass.

"Should have given me another hour," she teased, taking a sip and grimacing at the taste. He stayed standing, watching her as he drank. "Will you sit down?"

"Why?" he asked.

"You're making me nervous."

"If you're nervous being here, Cassie, you're more than welcome to leave - "

"No, Severus, that's not what I meant." She finished what was in her glass, willing the alcohol that burned her throat to grant her some instant courage. She stood up, going to set it down on the coffee table so her hands were free. "I'm so grateful that you were open to letting me come in here, I am."

"Yes, and take extra care not to tell anyone, or that will be my job," he said, and Cassie scoffed.

"Of course I'm not going to tell anyone," she said. "I'm not stupid."

He didn't say anything, just continued to watch her carefully as he took another sip of the amber liquid. She assumed he was weighing his options, calculating his next move; the man was nothing if not meticulous, and she knew he was likely doubting his judgment. Cursing those nameless students that had earned detention for the evening, essentially ruining what they were doing not hours earlier, Cassie was starting to dread the idea that he might make her leave. All she wanted was for him to touch her again.

"Severus?" she asked meekly, breaking the silence between the two of them. He was still standing with his whiskey in hand. She was standing by the fireplace, her arms crossed over her chest defensively, suddenly feeling exposed standing in nothing but his nightshirt.

"Hmm?"

"Do you want me to leave?"

He took a deep breath, the seconds of silence before he answered seeming like an eternity to Cassie. But finally, he said, "No."

Cassie, who hadn't been expecting that response, laughed.

"What's so funny?" Snape spat, looking bitter, and she shook her head, crossing the room to him.

"Nothing's funny, Severus," She slowly took the tumbler from his hand, downing the last of his beverage and setting it down on the coffee table to join hers. "I'm thrilled."

"You're odd, Miss Black," he said lowly. His eyes locked on her as she reached up to his shoulders, her fingers going under his cloak and pushing it off of him. It fell to the floor in a heap, and without missing a beat, she reached up under his chin, starting to undo the first button of his frock coat.

"You really ought to stop calling me that," Cassie said, giving him a sly smile. She thought he might argue with her, maybe even protest the fact that she was starting to undress him. But his hands went to her shoulders, gently caressing them, then down her upper arms as she worked. Even the contact of his hands on such chaste places was sending exquisite shivers throughout her body.

Eventually, the many buttons were undone, and Cassie pushed the offending garment off of him, letting it join his black cloak on the floor. Snape stood before her a white dress shirt and his pants, and suddenly, Cassie found herself in that state of desperation that she had felt in his office not a few hours before. Gone was her calm, deliberate method of opening his buttons and letting him gently rub her arms as they just enjoyed each other's close proximity. She gripped the front of his white shirt and pulled, roughly guiding him towards the loveseat, and once he was in front of it, she pushed him down, making him sit. Before he could have the chance to question her actions, she joined him, going to straddle his hips, her legs spread wide as she settled her knees on either side of his thighs. She caught his lips in a passionate kiss and he returned it enthusiastically, and once again, the two of them were caught up in their frenzied venture, hands roaming freely, breathing starting to quicken with each passing second.

Cassie's hands went inside of Snape's shirt, and she started to explore his lean muscles, her hands gliding down his arms, his pecks, his stomach. She decided that piece of clothing also needed to go and pulled it off of him, her heart pounding swiftly against her chest as she eyed the growing bulge in his black pants. Feeling nervous, but not letting it get the best of her, she started on his belt buckle, but he caught her wrist in his hand to stop her.

"Cassie," he said, his low voice husky. "You don't have to - "

"Severus," she said, gently cutting him off, and then gave him a kiss, "You need to stop thinking so much." She moved her lips to his neck, and he let out a loud groan, so she continued to work at unbuckling his belt. Once it was open, she didn't hesitate to place a hand down his pants, gripping his swollen erection before he had a chance to think about it. He let out another moan at the contact, instinctively urging on her advances, and soon she had pulled his pulsing cock from its fabric confinement. She gave it a few slow pumps, and the look he gave her was one of pure animalistic hunger.

Cassie gasped when Snape's hand found its way under the hem of the nightshirt, and without any barrier to slow his advances, his long fingers were slowly stroking her wet, wanting folds.

"You didn't put on any underclothes," Snape croaked, his words now punctuated with panting.

"Severus," she gasped, biting at his neck, her hand still gripping his cock firmly, "Severus, please, I can't take it anymore!"

He gripped her wrist again, pulling her hand away from his groin, and pulled her up with him as he stood. For a second, she was afraid that he was going to stop their activities again. But to her delight, he grabbed the nightshirt and yanked it over her head, leaving her completely naked. He pushed down his pants and boxers, swiftly stepping out of them. Cassie felt a blush rise to her chest and cheeks, being completely naked like this with him for the first time, and he pulled her to him.

"You look beautiful," he murmured, tilting her chin up and catching her lips with his. He led her into the bedroom, and without ceremony, pushed her down onto the waiting bed, coming to settle himself between her legs. He started to caress her exposed breasts, and she started to squirm underneath him, feeling like she could barely handle waiting any longer. She felt like she was about to burst when she felt him slide one long, pale finger inside her. She moaned loudly, bucking her hips at the contact, and his thumb started to make slow, calculated circles around her clit. It wasn't long before she started to feel the pressure building in her belly under his experienced attentions. He was pumping his finger in and out of her rhythmically, and within minutes she was seeing stars, shaking from the intensity of his articulate touches.

Still trembling, Cassie reached for Snape, pulling him down to her and kissing him, letting him know without words how overjoyed she was to be there with him. She could feel his hard cock pressing into her hip, and she reached down, stroking him, making him inhale sharply.

"Cassie, you're sure?" he breathed, that brilliant mind of his never really shutting off completely.

"Severus, I want you so much!" she responded, and he let out a growl from deep within his chest, kissing her jaw as he readied himself at her entrance. He finally pushed himself inside of her, starting to thrust when she moaned his name in such a delicious way that he never wanted to stop hearing it. He tried to take his time, to make this moment last, but they were both getting so caught up in it that neither one of them had much control. Either way, Cassie found herself shaking in ecstasy, coming for the second time in a matter of minutes, her walls contracting around his thick member, making him finish soon after.

Snape pushed himself off of Cassie, rolling onto his side so he could face her, both of them trying to catch their breath as they looked at one another. She wanted to say something but didn't know what that something was to say. She snuggled up to him, burying her face in his neck and taking in his scent. His skin was sweaty from the activities they had just partaken in, and she loved it. They were silent for a few minutes, just lying in each other's arms blissfully. But, someone had to speak first, and reality always had to come crashing back.

"Cassie," Snape said, his low voice like music to her ears, although she knew she might not like he was about to say. "I have to patrol the corridors for a few hours, I'm sorry."

Cassie sighed. "I suppose I can't convince you to skip it."

"You can stay here for the time being if you'd like."

"I'll stay," she said, and he started to sit up. "But you'll come right back, won't you?"

"Where else would I go?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. She shrugged.

"I don't know. I just want you near me, is all. It's been a rough day."

"Well, hopefully, it hasn't been _all_ bad," Snape said as he left to fetch his clothes that were lying in other rooms. Cassie, who had just been enjoying seeing his naked backside as he walked, burst out laughing.

"Severus Snape, did you just make a joke?" she asked, giggling. He came back in the bedroom, his pants now on, his shirt partially buttoned.

"Just try to get some rest, will you? I don't know if I can justify letting you skip classes again tomorrow, and I don't intend on letting you sleep when I get back from patrolling," he responded, and Cassie started laughing again. Snape's demeanor rarely changed beyond pissed off or stoic, but as she watched him leave, she could have sworn he had the tiniest bounce in his step as he went.


	11. Fear and Runespoor Eggs

As giddy was Cassie was after her activities with Snape, she was also exhausted. She had to make the extra effort to clear her mind before allowing herself to drift to sleep. It was a routine she had become accustomed to in the last few weeks, and she couldn't afford to break that habit. She had a secret to guard and someone else's livelihood to protect now, and she couldn't allow someone to infiltrate her memories.

She didn't know what time it was when he came back to her, but he woke up her gently, climbing into bed with care so he wouldn't startle her. Wrapping his arms around her still naked body, he swept her black hair aside so he could plant gentle kisses on the back of her neck.

"Mmm," Cassie didn't know where she was for a second or two, at first thinking she was in a dream. "How was your patrol?"

"Tedious," Snape replied, pulling her backside up against him. "Sinistra always insists we patrol together, and she was droning on about advances the Muggles are making on their telescope lenses and the like."

"Maybe she has a crush on you," Cassie teased, and Snape snorted.

"Absolutely asinine," he declared. His hand was on her knee, and it was slowly trailing upwards, making her squirm.

"What, you don't think it's possible?" Cassie pressed on. "You're young, she's young. You work together. Maybe she'll invite you up to the Astronomy tower some night and you two can have a romantic look at the stars - "

"That's ridiculous. We're colleagues," Now he had a hand on her breast, kneading the soft flesh liberally, and Cassie closed her eyes, wanting to relish the feeling. But even so, the topic of her jesting had her wondering.

"Severus?"

"Hmm?"

"Have you ever done...this, with one of the other staff members?"

He growled, obviously annoyed. "It should be easier to derail your train of thought!"

"You have, haven't you!" she exclaimed in utter delight, and she turned herself around in his arms so she was facing him, wanting to see his expression. His expression of embarrassment made her laugh, and she clapped a hand to her mouth. "Who was it?"

"This is not a conversation to have right now," he muttered darkly, not quite meeting her eyes. His unease made her feel bad for continuing to bombard him with the topic, but she couldn't help it.

"Oh, come on," she said, grinning at him broadly, but she could tell it was just making it worse. "It's just me. I might not know _everything_ about you, but I know that you prefer boxers over briefs, which I knew _before_ I saw you naked, by the way, and that you absolutely loathe The Waterboys, although how you even know enough about them to hate them, I'm not sure - "

"Okay, Cassie, enough - "

"And that when you get into making a potion, and someone interrupts you, this vein pops out on your forehead, and it only makes an appearance then, not when you're angry in any other situation. So that must mean you're _really_ ready to skin them alive - "

"Enough, you ridiculous girl!" Snape said sharply. "What is the point of all this rambling?"

"My point is," Cassie said, smiling at him, and giving him a quick peck on the lips, "Is that it's me, and it's _us,_ and I want you to know that you can tell me things, Severus."

"So you want me to tell you who on the staff I had relations with," he summarized dully, looking rather unamused.

"Only if you want to," Cassie replied. Snape didn't say anything for a few moments, and then the next thing Cassie knew, he was kissing her again. If he had intended to thwart her goal of learning who on the staff he had slept with, he had swiftly succeeded now. With one hand back on her chest and the other between her legs, he had her moaning and completely lost in the moment in no time at all.

Not in the mood to beg for it this time, Cassie pushed Snape on his back and climbed on top of him, catching him off guard. Grasping his swollen erection in her hand, she lowered herself onto him, making both of them moan in pleasure, and she began to move up and down slowly on his shaft.

Wanting more contact, Snape sat up, clinging to the young witch and pulling her towards him, and they moved together in unison. He kissed her neck, nipping at the soft flesh, moving his hands to her hips to guide her and urge her to move faster. It wasn't long before she was gasping his name again, and he shuddered, finishing soon after.

They only got a few hours of sleep before the morning was upon them. Cassie, making sure there wasn't any evidence of their passionate romps left on her, bathed quickly and pulled on her school uniform once again. It made her feel like she was going back to a different world, even if it was just on the other side of Snape's door.

After saying their goodbyes with a quick kiss, Cassie made her way through Snape's office and into the Potions classroom, her bouquets and cards in hand, hoping that no one would notice what direction she was coming from. But it was early enough that the dungeons were deserted, and when she entered the Slytherin common room to put her flowers down and put on a fresh uniform, only Laanstra asked her of her whereabouts.

"Hospital wing," Cassie explained quickly, pulling on a new skirt, and her dormmate didn't ask anything further.

Having been distracted in the last twelve or so hours, she hadn't thought far enough ahead to anticipate the looks she'd get when she entered the Great Hall for breakfast. Perhaps if she had been more awake, she might have expected the murmurs and stares. But alas, she had already started to make her way to the Slytherin table, and not wanting to make more of a scene by turning abruptly and leaving, she took a seat and started to eat.

She allowed herself to look up at Snape once during her morning meal. He wasn't looking in her direction and seemed to be watching something at the Gryffindor table. It was for the better, because even without him making eye contact with her, images of last night started to play in her mind, and the butterflies in her stomach started to make quite the commotion. She had to bite her bottom lip to keep from grinning ear to ear, and didn't want to answer any questions about why she was smiling like an idiot for no reason.

But once her smile left, it didn't return for the rest of the day. Her first class of the day was Transfiguration. She noticed right off the bat that two Gryffindors were missing. Without giving Cassie a chance to ask anyone what was wrong, Fiona Jenour spoke up.

"Their parents pulled them out last night when they heard you weren't being expelled or sent to Azkaban!" she cried, and when Cassie turned to look at her, it looked as though she had been sobbing.

"Oh," Cassie said, dumbfounded at the notion, and feeling hurt that the Head Girl sounded dismayed that she hadn't been thrown into the wizard's prison. She knew parents were upset, as she had seen the mob outside of Hogsmeade, but to do something as drastic as pulling out students in the last year of their education was unexpected. "I can't believe that - "

"You can't, can you?" The Head Girl said, placing her hands on her hips. "And you have the nerve to just show up to class the next day like you own the place!"

"Listen, Jenour, you'd better shut up, because you have no idea what the hell you're talking about!" Cassie said, her hands balling into fists as she fought to control her temper. McGonagall walked in, immediately picking up on the tension in the room.

"Now, girls, what is going on here?" she demanded, the rest of the students in the room watching the scene unfold silently.

"Oh, nothing, Professor!" Jenour said dramatically, folding her arms across her chest. "Just informing Black of all the trouble she's caused, costing my friends their educations!"

"Trouble?" Cassie barked. "I get attacked, and I'm the one that caused trouble! You are off your rocker, you twit, I didn't make their nutter parents take them out - "

"That's enough!" McGonagall said shrilly. "I will not tolerate the matter being discussed in my class again, do you two hear me?" She glared at each young witch individually, and Cassie nodded, trying to calm herself, not wanting to be cross with the Deputy Headmistress that had done so much to help her the day before.

"Yes, Professor McGonagall, I apologize," Cassie said, sitting in her seat.

"Yes, Professor," Jenour mumbled, following suit.

"Good. Now, I expect a studious environment for my seventh-years, and if you can't adhere to that level of professionalism, then you will be asked to leave and assigned detention. Am I understood?"

"Yes, Professor," they said in unison. So Cassie tried her best to do just that and focused on practicing their assignment for the day, which was changing the color and length of a kitten's fur. She was happy that each student got their own so she didn't have to sit through idle chit chat. But the downside was that without the distraction of a partner, she had to listen to the Head Girl's complaints during the lesson.

Cassie's kitten, who was currently short-haired and white like pure snow, changed to fluffy and bright orange with a quick flick of her wand. McGonagall awarded Slytherin five points and kept circling the classroom.

"I mean, it just doesn't make sense," Cassie heard Jenour whispering hurriedly to whoever was in earshot, "what makes more sense to the school board? Keep all of the students and make her leave, or lose a whole bunch of Gryffindors just to keep her?"

Cassie flicked her wand again. Her kitten turned calico with little effort, and she reached out to stroke it, trying to keep herself calm by caressing the purring little creature.

"It's not just Gryffindors," Cassie heard another Gryffindor respond. "I heard that Hufflepuff lost _four_ second years this morning. Four!"

Cassie kept her eyes glued on the fuzzy animal on her desk. Now, it was grey, with white paws, and was rolling around, begging for her attention. She scratched behind its ears, wishing she could tune out the whispering around her.

"I heard," came Jenour's high voice again, and Cassie was gritting her teeth now. "That Fudge _wanted_ to put her in Azkaban, but she threatened to do to him what she did to those wizards and witches in Hogsmeade! Can you imagine?"

"You do realize," Cassie hissed, still not turning around to face any of them, "that if you really believed I was capable of any of that, then you are the stupidest person alive, discussing it right in front of me?"

"You'd never dream of doing anything in front of McGonagall!" the Head Girl said shrilly, still trying to remain quiet, but unable to contain her voice to a whisper any longer. The Head of Gryffindor, who was across the classroom trying to instruct a boy who hadn't any luck even changing the color of a single strand of fur so far, looked in their direction.

"And yet I was so bold as to threaten the Minister of Magic in front of her?"

"I dare you, Black! You do anything, and my parents will make sure you're expelled!" Jenour shrieked. Cassie, who had not been threatening to do anything, but had completely lost her temper at the Gryffindor's irrationality, flicked her wand again, intending to change her kitten's fur one last time and then leave the classroom to avoid any confrontation. What happened instead and completely accidentally, was that the small feline transformed into a full-grown panther. Without hesitation, the animal that had bonded with Cassie turned towards Fiona Jenour. It was snarling and presenting its many sharp, white teeth as it leaped from Cassie's desk to the Gryffindor's, and the entire classroom started to panic.

"Nobody move!" McGonagall commanded, making her way towards the large predator, and the Head Girl was shrinking back in her chair, covering her face as if that would help her if the animal decided to attack. Cassie, while surprised, as she had done this unintentionally, found it rather amusing seeing the pompous girl in this state now.

"Don't worry, Jenour, I've got it," With a casual flick of her wand, the panther shrunk back into the harmless kitten again. The feline, not realizing that it was back to its original size, was still hissing at the girl, and Cassie scooped it up into her arms to soothe it.

"Black," McGonagall said, her hand over her heart, "out in the hallway, _now!"_

Cassie complied, and as soon as the two were alone, she said, "It wasn't on purpose, Professor, honest!"

"Even so, Miss Black, you do realize the danger you just put everyone in?" she said, and with a click of her tongue, took the kitten back from Cassie. "This thing could have seriously injured Fiona or one of the other students!"

"It's not the cat's fault," Cassie argued, "and that Head Girl of yours needs to learn to keep her mouth shut - "

"And you need to learn to control your temper, Miss Black! Is that not what Alastor Moody just told you yesterday?"

"Am I have supposed to have learned how to do that in one day, Professor?" Cassie asked, exasperated. "That seems a bit unfair, doesn't it?"

"It does," McGonagall agreed. "But everyone is watching you now, Miss Black, and I mean everyone. There's a reason why the students are talking. We've been getting dozens of letters from parents and concerned members of the community since the attack, and with the _Prophet_ continuing to stick their noses into it, it's not going away anytime soon!"

"So maybe I should just leave," Cassie said quietly.

"What?"

"Maybe Jenour had a point," Cassie said. "If it's dozens of students leaving just to keep me, then maybe - "

"Now stop right there," McGonagall said rather sternly, although her voice softened significantly. "I'm suggesting that you be careful with your actions as to not give any of these muppets any more reasons to fear you. But you will _not_ give up your right to finish your magical education!"

"But - "

"I don't want to hear it!"

Cassie looked up at her professor, trying to will away the tears that were threatening to fall from her eyes. "Thank you, Professor."

"Don't thank me yet. I haven't decided if I'm going to put you in detention," McGonagall said, although rather playfully. She sent Cassie on her way then. She was hoping that the Transfiguration lesson would be the worst part of her day and went into her Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson with a bit of optimism. But as soon as Professor Quirrell began to speak of his time spent in Burkina Faso, she smelled trouble.

"A rr-ather skilled h-h-healer I met there, and s-s-till occasionally have c-contact with, sent m-me this recently," he was saying, and pulled a large golden box from behind his desk. He cast a charm on it, making it float in the center of the room so all of the Slytherin and Ravenclaw seventh-years could see it clearly. It was adorned with purple and green gemstones, and images of snakes and letters from a foreign language were carved on the sides. The students began to whisper to each other, obviously enthralled by its myster. Cassie's stomach began to turn over.

"I've t-tried m-many methods t-to open it, b-b-because the sender of this p-package said that there is s-something incredibly useful i-inside," Quirrell said. "B-but I've come to the c-c-conclusion that the o-only sure w-way to open it, is t-to have someone to c-command it t-to do so." Cassie was staring at the box, wondering if she should just get up and leave right then. She knew he was doing this intentionally, trying to get the students to fear her even more. What other purpose would he have for doing it in front of them?

"Miss B-black," Quirrell said, and Cassie winced, knowing what was coming, what he was going to ask of her. "I've h-heard a few i-interesting r-rumors about you, one being that your P-patronus is a Runespoor. Is th-that correct?"

Okay, Cassie wasn't expecting him to say that. But now she was pissed off. He was going out of his way to remind her classmates that she was associated with serpents, with creatures known to be linked to dark wizards.

"Where did you hear that?" she countered.

"It's true!" Babbs offered enthusiastically, and Cassie glared at him.

"Impressive that a w-witch your a-age can even produce a c-corporeal Patronus charm, and that c-creature, how interesting," Quirrell said. More murmuring among her classmates. Cassie wanted to run. "So what I-I w-wanted to ask of y-you Miss Black, and p-please, c-correct me if I'm w-wrong, b-but I've heard that you are c-capable of s-speaking Parseltongue?"

Cassie wanted to deny it, but the other seventh year students knew the truth. It would be pointless to deny it when it was likely that one of them would just blurt out the truth.

"Capable and willing are two very different things," she said, and the class fell eerily quiet. Cassie locked eyes with the timid professor, and for a moment, she swore she could see right through a facade, that she could see triumph in his eyes, as if he had proved something to himself. She was sure then, that this man that Dumbledore had commanded Snape to keep an eye on, was up to something.

Quirrell didn't press the issue after that, choosing to put the golden crate aside and continue speaking of his times in Burkina Faso. But when the lecture was done, he quietly called Cassie's name as the students were packing up to leave.

"Yes, Professor?" she asked, walking up to his desk as the last student left. She was alone with him.

"I'm g-giving you d-detention, for your d-defiant a-a-attitude, and for r-ruining your c-classmate's chance of learning," he said delicately.

Cassie narrowed her eyes, but didn't dare argue. There was a dangerous quality to this man, she could sense it. But she was also eager to see if she could find out more. "Yes, Professor."

"Report to m-my office t-tonight, 8 o'clock."

Dinner in the Great Hall proved not to be relaxing at all. Cassie was forcing herself to eat something, when a scuffle broke out between the Hufflepuff and Slytherin tables. She didn't even realize it had been about her Hogsmeade situation until she heard one of the fifth-year Slytherins yell, "If she was going to kill you all, she would have done it already!" as if it were the best defense imaginable.

Cassie's mouth fell open, as did a lot of the other students'. It was a boy who had learned at an early age to kiss her butt in case she decided to become the next Lord Voldemort, and she hated that fellow Slytherins were feeling the need to become involved in her current plight. She stood up and moved towards the commotion, ready to intervene, but Snape had already swooped down from the High Table and had grabbed her by the forearm. He was guiding her out of the Great Hall while Professor Sprout dealt with the disturbance among the students.

"Calm down," he muttered, and once they were in the corridor, he let go of her.

"If I get told to calm down one more time," she spat back at him, but she didn't have an end to that sentence, and she started to pace.

"Yes, Minerva informed me of your lesson today," he said. "You need to control your temper!"

"Oh, and you'll be the one teaching me, then? Brilliant plan, Severus!" she spat, and then she added, " _Professor Snape!"_ before he corrected her.

"Let's go to my office," he said, and she sighed wearily. She knew it wasn't for any fun reason, based on his demeanor, but she followed him anyway. Once they were there, he closed the door and locked it before continuing. "The Deputy Headmistress and I met with the Headmaster today, Cassie. We feel that it may have been too early to put you back into the student population."

Cassie scoffed. "You make it sound like I'm an ex-convict being reintroduced into society!"

"Maybe so, but it might be better for everyone if you complete your studies independently for the time being." He sounded apologetic.

"For how long?"

"We'd start with a week, and go from there."

Cassie nodded. "Okay. Where will I do my studies, then?"

"The library, or the common room, perhaps."

"Wouldn't the other students see me? Wouldn't that be upsetting to them? Maybe we should clean out one of Filch's old torture chambers here in the dungeons, wouldn't that be more fitting?" she said, her voice growing louder, and she could feel her anger starting to boil. "Or I could just be banished to the Room of Requirement, but make sure it's got shackles so it resembles a cell - "

" _Cassie!"_ Snape said sharply, coming up to her and gripping her shoulders. He bent down so his face was level with hers, trying to lock eyes, but she was so lost in her manic thoughts that she was barely registering that he was with her. "Cassie, this has got to stop!"

She shook her head, noticing that his face was inches from hers. "I'm sorry, Severus."

"I'm not going to divulge you every time you decide to have a pity party, you know," he said gruffly, and she yanked herself out of his grasp.

"Well, that's good to know," she said, and she started to head towards the door. "Wouldn't want that from the man I'm sleeping with, would I?"

"Cassie - " he started, taking a step towards her, but she put her hand in front of her.

"Severus, I'm fine. I've got to go, got detention with Quirrell."

"What?"

"Yeah, he decided to remind everyone in class today that my Patronus is a Runespoor and that I'm a Parselmouth," she said, smiling sarcastically. "Nothing like adding to the fear-mongering, you know."

"Why I am just hearing about this now?"

"You were busy," she said, and unlocking his office door with her wand and yanking it open, "deciding to banish me from the one normal thing in my life."

He followed her through the empty classroom, catching up to her easily with his long strides. "Why did he give you detention?"

"Because I refused to speak Parseltongue in front of everyone," she said calmly. "Thought it might freak everyone out more than they already are."

"That creepy little plonker is up to something," Snape growled.

"Yeah, he is," Cassie said, and with a flick of her wrist, she slammed the classroom door in the Potions Master's face, swiftly heading down the corridor to make her way to detention.

She made it there a few minutes early. When she knocked on the DADA classroom door, she didn't hear the professor's voice, but decided to head in anyway. Maybe she'd find something interesting in there while he was away, although she figured he wouldn't be stupid enough to just leave something incriminating lying out in the open. She was crossing the classroom towards his desk when she heard him enter the room, and she jumped.

"H-hello, Miss B-Black," he said, his hands folded neatly in front of him as he spoke.

"Hello, Professor," she said politely.

"P-please, h-have a seat," he said, and she obliged, picking a desk right in front of his. She got out a quill and some parchment, anticipating having to write lines. "Oh, y-you won't b-be n-needing those." He came and stood in front of his desk.

"Oh," Cassie replied, now feeling a bit nervous. "What will we be doing, Professor?"

"I'm a-afraid," he started, and then smiled at her meekly, "th-that I must i-insist," and then he bent behind his desk, producing the golden box from earlier. Cassie eyed it warily.

"You want me to help you open it," she said, and he nodded.

"Y-you're the o-only o-one who c-can," he said.

"What's in it?"

"N-not e-entirely sure," he replied. "B-but if it's d-dangerous, I'm s-sure it's n-nothing y-you can't h-h-handle, eh?"

"You have a lot of confidence in my abilities," Cassie said, sighing. "Okay, fine. But I have to ask, Professor. Why did you insist on having me open it in class, especially if you don't know what's in it? Why not ask me to do it in private?"

"I th-thought y-you m-might l-like the chance t-t-t-o show off y-your p-powers," Quirrell said, a surprised look on his face. Cassie raised an eyebrow at him.

"I don't know where you've been getting your information from," she said, growing more uneasy by the second, "But I don't like advertising the fact that I share powers with Lord Voldemort, Professor Quirrell."

At the mention of her father's name, the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor visibly flinched, looking around the room as if the Dark Lord might appear any second. "M-m-miss B-Black, y-your b-b-b-oldness is astounding!"

"My boldness? What about yours, Professor?" Cassie said, words coming forth that she probably shouldn't be saying. "Do you think I'm stupid, that I wouldn't figure out that you're working for Fudge?"

"E-excuse m-me, M-miss B-b-black?"

"Go ahead, deny it," she said, shifting in her seat, casually folding her hands in front of her on the desk. "It's just my theory, of course. I know Fudge is afraid of me, and you spying on me fits. I'd just appreciate it if you stop trying to peer into my mind, because it's getting rather bothersome."

He was looking at her with narrowed eyes, and then they flitted upwards, as if he were listening to something else for a moment. "I-if I w-were a-attempting t-to l-look into your m-mind," he said slowly, "it's n-not as if s-s-someone c-c-could blame me, with the P-Potter b-b-b-oy here, a-and all. O-one would want to be s-sure of y-your t-true intentions, o-of course."

"If Harry Potter needs protecting," Cassie said, standing up, and coming around her desk. She took a few slow steps towards Quirrell, who was making no attempts to stand his ground, and taking steps back from her. "It sure as hell isn't from _me,_ I assure you."

Quirrell was visibly shaken. Cassie still wasn't sure what his game was, but she was confident she wasn't going to be getting more out of him tonight. She turned towards the box that was on the desk, and in Parseltongue, hissed, _"Open."_

The top banged open abruptly, and white smoke erupted from the top. Curiosity getting the both of them, Cassie and Quirrell approached the desk to see what was inside. As the box wasn't moving or making any noise, it seemed safe.

"Runespoor e-eggs," Quirrell said quietly. "P-professor Snape m-might m-m-make g-good use o-of th-them."

Cassie nodded. "So what else were you going to have me do for my detention, Professor?"

"I - well - "

"Were you going to question my loyalty to my father? See what my plans were to kill the Potter boy?" she pressed on, knowing she was potentially getting herself into more trouble. Quirrell was wringing his hands now. She noticed that his eyes were flitting upwards again, and she wondered if he was having some sort of small seizure. "Well?"

"M-miss B-Black," he started, and then Cassie felt it, the familiar tug on her mind, the one she had felt throughout the beginning of the year, although it was much stronger this time. But she had practiced her Occlumency diligently and was ready for it, and slammed down on the advance like a trap door.

"How _dare you!"_ she seethed, her wand out, now pointing it in Quirrell's face, and he began to whimper.

"P-please, it's n-not m-m-me, I'm just f-f-following my mast - m-ministry's orders!" he stuttered, a pathetic mess before her. "I'm j-just doing wh-what I c-can to k-keep other's s-safe!"

"I'm leaving!" she said, turning away, mustering every bit of control she had to not curse the blubbering professor.

And then something changed in his demeanor, something that made Cassie's nerves on edge for the first time that night. "We're not done!" Quirrell said, his voice clear and bold, not stuttering once. Cassie, who was near the door, turned to look at him.

"If you don't like it," she countered, her wand still in her grip, "take it up with my head of house." She left without another word, ignoring Professor Quirrell's requests for her to come back and fetch the Runespoor eggs for Snape, and headed down towards the dungeons.

She found the Potions Master in his office grading papers. She closed the door and locked it. She knew she should give him a play by play of what had just happened, because all of it had been suspicious. But right then, all she wanted was his skin on hers, and the feel of him inside her again, so she went around his desk and grabbed him, slamming her lips into his without a word, all worries forgotten for the next blissful moments as they found comfort in one another.


	12. Halloween

Cassie and Snape were lying on the office floor, trying to catch their breath after their spur of the moment activities, when Cassie started to recount what had happened with Quirrell. Snape, who was on his back with Cassie on top of him, started to sit up.

"Severus, what are you doing?" Cassie was bewildered at his sudden movements, and she didn't want to move from her spot on his chest.

"I'm going to have a little chat with Quirrell!" he snarled, finally pushing her aside and reaching for his discarded clothing.

"Let's just hold on for a second," Cassie protested, yanking his shirt out of his grasp so he couldn't put it on, earning a menacing scowl from him. "He's already out of sorts from my confrontation with him, don't you think you barging in to yell at him is just going to make things worse?"

"The cockiness that phony little twit has, to have you in his office alone and try to invade your mind! " Snape was thundering, and he heaved himself off the floor, grabbing his wand. "I'm going to do more than yell, I'm going to curse that turban-wearing head right off his shoulders - "

" _Severus!_ " Cassie shouted, placing her hands on his face and forcing him to look at her. He blinked a few times, and she softened her tone when she spoke next. "Listen to yourself. What if he does work for the Ministry? Hasn't what I've said to him tonight already done enough damage?"

"If he ever does anything like that to you again - "

"I can handle myself!" she said. Snape pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing. "And you're the one who said the less he thinks we're on to him, the less dangerous he'll be. Well, maybe if he thinks it's just me, we can still just let things play out and he won't do anything drastic."

"There's more to it than him potentially spying for Fudge, Cassie," Snape said darkly. "That might be part of it, but with all of these other things going on - "

"I know, Severus. I sense it, too," she muttered.

She wanted to stay in his apartments again, but Snape wouldn't risk other students noticing her missing during the night, so after another brief argument, he sent her back to the Slytherin common room. Cassie, who was dreading being isolated during the coming days, hated having to be alone in her bed that night too.

As part of her professors' plan to ease her back into a normal routine with the other students, Cassie would not be having her meals in the Great Hall. She had breakfast delivered to her in the common room, and then not having anywhere else to go for the rest of the morning, started on the course work she had gotten rather behind on. She tried to ignore the fact that everyone else was heading out to start their day while she sat there, acting like she didn't exist.

She was almost done writing her Astronomy essay when a house-elf brought in a letter for her, along with her course work from her professors. Thrilled to see that Tonks had found a few minutes to write her, she opened the letter, eager to hear from her beloved cousin.

_Cass,_

_I am still sporting all four limbs, although I almost lost a toe. Pray it remains intact, you know how important it is to me that I remain symmetrical._

_Auror training is rather difficult. Although if I haven't died yet, you can probably handle it._

_Moody has been talking about you nonstop since we saw you, he has your back. But in all seriousness, be on the lookout for our dear Minister._

_Keep your chin up._

_Love always,_

_Dora_

Cassie groaned. Not that she was surprised to get such an ominous warning from someone so close to the Ministry, but it wasn't something she wanted to be thinking about, not when she was making so much progress on her homework. What a silly thing, she thought to herself, to be worrying about the orbital paths of Jupiter's moons, when the government was out for your blood.

She folded up the letter and pushed on, then had lunch in the same chair. In the afternoon she was allowed to move about the castle to meet with her professors. She spent a few minutes with each of them to discuss what had been in their written lessons, to perform wand work, and to answer any questions she might have. It was a brutally efficient way to educate her, and almost all of them seemed repentant as they sent her on her way, as they had actual classes full of students to teach. By the time the late afternoon was upon her, Cassie only had Potions and Defense Against the Dark Arts to deal with, and she was waiting in the entrance hall for Snape. She would have preferred to just meet with Quirrell and then have the rest of the evening with the Potions Master, but he had forbidden her from going to see the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor alone, something that made her feel silly and at the same time protected.

He appeared at the top of the staircase, and together they started to make their way to Quirrell's classroom.

"I am more than capable of going there alone - "

"Not another word," he growled, and two first-years who had been walking past them jumped out of the way at hearing his tone. Cassie had to stifle a giggle. His aura as radiating animosity and Cassie couldn't blame any of the students that turned and went the other direction when they saw him coming.

Cassie was going to knock before going into the classroom, but Snape barged right in without an announcement. She followed closely.

"Quirrell," he snapped, and the other professor, who had been seated at his desk, suddenly jumped up, looking rather alarmed.

"P-professor S-s-snape, I-I wasn't ex-expecting y-you - " he sputtered, wringing his hands. Snape strode right up to his desk.

"Miss Black is here for her lesson, and as she is due for mine in less than ten minutes, I suggest you start," he hissed lowly, bending forward and placing his hands on the desk, daring the other wizard to challenge him.

"Y-yes, P-P-professor Snape, r-r-right a-away," Quirrell said, and the Head of Slytherin turned on his heel swiftly, going to stand by one of the other desks. He wouldn't sit, choosing instead to keep his intimidating stance, staring as Cassie performed a few spells for Quirrell and went over a few things from the textbook. The lesson was over within the allotted ten minutes, and then the two were on their way back out of the classroom.

"W-wait!" came Quirrell's voice, and Snape and Cassie exchanged a glance before turning back around. "The R-runespoor e-eggs, Professor," Quirrell said and gestured towards the open crate, the one that Cassie had opened using Parseltongue the night before.

"What about them, Quirrell?" Snape asked, raising an eyebrow. Cassie looked at him in surprise, as she knew the eggs were a rare, prized ingredient in potion-making. She had almost felt bad leaving them last night and had even considered going back for them even after everything that had happened with Quirrell.

"D-d-don't you w-want them?" Quirrell asked, smiling timidly. "I have no u-use f-for them, a-after all."

"Neither do I, considering they are only available on the black market," Snape replied coolly. "I suggest you destroy them immediately."

There was a heavy silence after that, and once again, Cassie could have sworn she saw something else, something sinister flash across Quirrell's features.

"Y-your loss then, S-severus," he said, and then Snape grabbed Cassie's elbow, guiding her out of the classroom.

"Severus," she said when they were safe to speak again, "What was that about?"

"I'm not entirely sure," he admitted, "But it was some sort of test, to see if either one of was tempted."

"Well, I was tempted," Cassie said. "I know how valuable they are for potions, I almost took them for you last night - "

They were in the dungeons now, and thankfully the corridor was completely deserted, because Snape suddenly pushed her into the wall, his snarling face an inch from hers. "You daft, stupid girl!"

"Get out of my face!" she hissed, not warming to his insults and the furious expression he wore.

"I don't ever want to hear that again, that you'd put yourself in such an idiotic situation _for me!"_ he spat, and Cassie grew angry at his reaction. But she also felt a familiar pulsing between her legs, and she was very aware of the fact that his face was so close to hers, and the hand on her chest that was keeping her pressed into the cold stone wall.

"I can't promise that!" she whispered back, "because sometimes, irrational things happen when two people - "

And then they heard the laughter of approaching students. Snape let go of her, immediately straightening up. He glared at the gaggle of Slytherins as they passed by, but Cassie couldn't help but gaze at the older wizard. She wanted to drink in the sight of him because even though he aggravated her, she wanted him.

Without speaking, they headed towards the Potions classroom, and Cassie took off her knapsack. Assuming he was still angry, she was ready to get whatever lesson he had in store for her over with.

"Okay, Professor," she said sarcastically, "What potion am I making for you tonight?" She turned around, just in time for him to scoop her up into his arms and kiss her. It was needy and passionate, and he had bowled into her with so much force that he nearly lost his balance, using a nearby bookshelf to steady the two of them as they pawed at one another.

Almost as swiftly as he had slammed her into the bookshelf, Snape was lifting her and moving them to his desk, pushing anything in the nearby vicinity onto the floor. She couldn't know what had suddenly gotten into him, nor did she care at the moment, but his assertiveness alone was enough to drive her near the edge. Without warning, he gripped the top of her shirt and tore it in two. Buttons flew everywhere, her skin now exposed and vulnerable to the cool air of the dungeons. He pushed her bra aside roughly, and his mouth was on her, sucking at her nipples. Cassie reached toward the obvious bulge in his pants, but he quickly snatched both of her wrists in his hand and put them up over her head.

"Not yet," he purred, and the deep command reaching her ears made her shudder. He continued his attentions on her heaving breasts for a few more tantalizing minutes, and his lips started to move down to her stomach. Reaching under her green plaid skirt, he hooked his fingers in the top of her panties and pulled them down in one swift movement, tossing them aside. They laid forgotten on the floor with the strewn contents of his desk.

She felt the heat rise to her cheeks as the Potions Master's face continued to descend, and then she felt his hands on her thighs, gently urging her legs further apart until she was completely exposed to him. She felt his tongue on her folds, and she cried out.

He lifted his face from between her legs momentarily, and confused, she lifted her head to see what was going on. He had grabbed his wand, starting to place sound-shielding charms around the classroom.

"Oh, I'm sorry - " she started to say, and he gave her a sly look, before slow inserting a digit inside of her, making her gasp as he finished casting the charms.

"No need to apologize," he said silkily. "I'll just need to remember to place them _before_ we get started in the classroom."

She would have giggled, except now she was enjoying the ministrations of his finger and was quite distracted. Then his face was going back down between her legs. Knowing that she could be as loud as she wanted to be, Cassie let her enthusiasm for the professor's attentions be well known. His tongue moving expertly on her sensitive nub, she was screaming his name in no time, and then he was standing up to grasp her torso and flip her over. He entered her from behind, grasping her hips with so much force that she was sure he was going to leave bruises.

When they were done, Cassie looked around at the disordered classroom, giggling. "I hope we didn't break anything!" she said, waving her wand, returning his stacks of parchment and quills to their respective places.

"If we did, it can be repaired," he mumbled, and she heard him zip up the fly on his pants, making her laugh even harder.

"Back to my original question," Cassie said, clearing her throat and trying her best to smooth her rumpled hair with her hands, which didn't help at all, "what potion are you having me make?"

"Forget it," he said, and Cassie let her jaw drop open for dramatic effect.

"Excuse me? Is Professor Snape letting me get away with not doing any homework?" she asked sweetly, batting her eyes at him.

"Don't push your luck," he growled, "Or I'll keep you here all night!"

"Fine by me," Cassie said without missing a beat. It took a moment for Snape to catch on to the innuendo. When he did, he took a few strides towards her, pinching her backside, making her shriek in laughter again. She took off for his office, and he chased her, slamming the door shut and locking it.

* * *

Cassie continued with her isolated way of schooling, sometimes completing her work in the Slytherin common room, other times doing it in the library for a change of scenery. She was growing used to having much of the day to herself, and although she didn't want to admit it, she was liking not having to deal with her immature classmates for the majority of the time. What she was missing more than anything was hearing more extensive lectures from her professors, as she was feeling like she was being ushered in and out of her visits with them too quickly. She could hardly blame them, as they had to keep their normal schedules on top of meeting with her, so she tried to stay patient.

Snape insisted on going with to every meeting with Quirrell, and they weren't getting any less awkward. If anything, her 'lessons' with him were becoming shortened with each visit, her most recent one lasting all of two minutes. 

Her longest lessons were Potions now, and while Snape had let her skip her first one, he was making sure she completed every session after that to the highest standard. Of course, that was hard to do, since they were usually alone in the classroom, and they had grown very good at distracting each other. Cassie had come close to melting several of his cauldrons, as forgotten elixirs were left bubbling on the fire while the two of them groped on his desk or in some far corner of the room.

The end of October was fast approaching, and Cassie was informed by her professors that the hysteria outside the school seemed to be dwindling. This seemed to be confirmed by letters she had been receiving from Andromeda and Molly, who said they were talking her up to anyone who would listen.

The day before Halloween, Theodore Quartermaine approached her while she sat in the library. It was the first time he had done so since the attack. She assumed he felt guilty for running away that day in Hogsmeade, but she had been so wrapped in her drama that she had pretty much forgotten about his feelings. Now that he was walking up to her with a somber look on his face, she felt like a jerk for not seeking him out sooner.

"Hello, Cass," he said, sitting down next to her.

"Hi, Theodore," she said, giving him a small smile. He had a newspaper in his hand, and she assumed it was a _Daily Prophet,_ something she had intentionally avoided since the Hogsmeade attack.

"How are you?"

"I'm better than I was, thanks," she said truthfully.

"Glad to hear it," he said. "I don't know if you've heard, Cass, but some of the students that got pulled out, their parents have let them back."

"Oh," Cassie said, surprised to hear the news. "That's great!"

"Yeah, I think people are starting to realize that everything's just been a big overreaction, but anyway...I brought this here to show you," he said, and handed her the paper. On the front page was an announcement that the four patients from St. Mungo's that were involved in the Hogsmeade attack were all sentenced to Azkaban. Cassie had to read over it twice to make sure it was real, and then she let out a huge sigh of relief.

"If that doesn't convince people that you weren't guilty, I don't know what will," Theodore said, smiling. "And then the other thing I wanted to show you," he said slowly, and he flipped the paper over a page, pointing to another article. There was a large, smiling portrait of Harry Potter grinning up at her, and then below it, a rather small picture of herself, a small school picture from a few years ago.

"What is this?" she asked quietly, starting to scan it over. The title read, 'The Boy Who Lived Defends the Dark Lord's Daughter'.

"Well, remember how I told you that someday, I'd like to write for the _Prophet?"_ Theodore explained. "After getting permission from Dumbledore, I interviewed some of the students. After bombarding the staff at the _Prophet_ and talking to your uncle, he made them print this."

"You talked to Lucius Malfoy?" Cassie asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, he actually thought it was a good idea."

Cassie shook her head. Of course, he did. Anything to make her look better right now would make him look better.

As Cassie read the article, tears started to form in her eyes, and she had to keep blinking them away. It had quotes from her classmates, about how studious and fair she was, and about how helpful she was to other students. Some of the quotes were ridiculous and had her laughing, as one third-year Hufflepuff stated, 'She's never even tried to kill me, not once!'; how it had made it in there, she didn't know. Madam Pince was starting to frown in their direction, but she didn't care, she was so overjoyed.

She spotted Harry's quote, which said, 'Well, my best mate Ron and his family adore her, so that's good enough for me!' She made a mental note to make sure she thanked that boy, and all of the Weasleys profusely. She would have done anything for a hug from Molly right then.

"Thank you, Theodore," she said sincerely, wiping away tears, "So much."

"Don't mention it. It would just be nice to have you back in class and back to tutoring, is all," he said. After giving her a reassuring pat on the hand, he left her to herself.

After gathering her thoughts, she got up and made her way to the Great Hall, a place she hadn't been to in far too long. Lunch was in session, and she was determined to find a certain group of Gryffindors. She burst through the doors, ignoring the looks that came her way, and she marched right up to where she saw the family of redheads.

"Hey, Cassie!" Ron greeted her, standing up immediately, and Cassie wrapped her arms around him in a big hug. Fred and George joined them, and then ever so tentatively, Percy hugged her as well.

"So you're not banished anymore?" Fred asked as they stayed squeezed together.

"I don't know," Cassie said, laughing. "I mean, not officially, I guess."

"It's about damn time," George added, "We missed you!"

"I missed you guys, too," Cassie said, and they pulled out of the hug. She saw that Harry was watching them, smiling slightly, but looking rather unsure of himself.

"Harry, thank you, for what you said," she said quietly.

"It's nothing," he said sheepishly. "You didn't even do anything, I don't even know what the fuss was about."

"Well, just know, that your word comes with a lot of impact," Cassie said. "Maybe now the Ministry will stop looking at me like I'm the devil's child."

"Are they really that stupid?" came Granger's voice, and it was clear that the girl had been eavesdropping because she was staring pointedly at them all.

"Yes, Hermione, they are," Cassie said.

Cassie was allowed to return to her classes the next day, and they were gloriously uneventful. No one gave her any grief or mentioned anything about the attacks. Even Quirrell's lecture seemed somewhat normal, and when he called on her during class, he addressed her as if they had a normal student-teacher dynamic. She hoped that the rest of the school year could continue like that.

The Great Hall looked positively grand for the Halloween feast, adorned with candles and bats and pumpkins. Cassie, who was so happy to be in that environment again, was even enthralled in her conversation about broomsticks with Harrison Babbs. But she was also stealing glances at Snape. He was surveying the room, doing his duty, and occasionally letting his gaze fall on the Slytherin seventh-year. They had made plans to meet up after the feast, as Snape didn't have to patrol the corridors until two in the morning, leaving them several precious hours to do as they pleased.

Cassie was considering picking up a phallic-shaped lollipop and trying to catch her Head of House's eye when it was in her mouth when Quirrell burst into the Great Hall. He announced feebly that there was a troll in the dungeons. Panic ensued, and Dumbledore had to restore order by shooting purple firecrackers from the end of his wand.

" _Shit,"_ she muttered under her breath because she knew she had a decision to make: be a good little Slytherin and go down to the common room like her Headmaster just commanded, or go to the third-floor corridor, because she knew that's where Snape was going to be headed because he didn't trust Quirrell.

Cassie stood rooted to her spot, looking around the Great Hall for a few moments. Quirrell was nowhere to be found, and Snape was already heading for a side door.

Snape was a big boy, he could handle himself. She couldn't risk getting into trouble, not when she _just_ got reintroduced to her routine. Then she remembered Quirrell from the other night, when he spoke to her in that clear, commanding voice, free of any stutter. It sent shivers down her spine, knowing he was hiding something.

She joined the Slytherins heading for the dungeons, and then broke away from the group, flicking her wand that was stashed in her robes, instantly changing her uniform colors from green to yellow so she could discreetly merge in with the Hufflepuffs. Once she needed to break away from them, she just made a run for it. If any professor stopped her now, she would just have to play stupid, because she didn't feel clever enough to come up with anything else at the moment, and she wasn't willing to hex any of them.

Cassie didn't have to wonder for very long if Snape or Quirrell were already there when she was approaching the third-floor corridor. As her legs carried her there, she heard thunderous growling, and then barking, and then cries of pain, and she could have sworn that it was coming from a familiar voice -

She skidded through the open door and into the corridor and was greeted by the sight of a huge, nightmarish looking dog with three heads. Quirrell, instead of looking pathetic and on the verge of passing out like usual, was off to the side, merely watching with interest as the one of the heads had its jaws locked on Snape's leg. Without hesitation, Cassie whipped out her wand and shot a stunning hex at the beast. It yelped, the hex merely catching it off guard and startling it, but not even close to stunning it as she hoped. Without thinking, she dove towards Snape, grabbing under his shoulders and yanking him backward. The dog's three heads were coming at them again, and Snape threw up a large shield charm in front of them, halting its advances momentarily. With another heave, she pulled them through the door, and Quirrell followed right after, slamming the door shut. She could hear the angered beast's barks and growl's from the other side of the door, but for now, they were safe.

"What the _fuck!"_ Cassie panted, sliding around to Snape's leg to look at his wounds, but he was glaring up at Quirrell.

"Get a good look, did you!" he seethed. "I suppose you would have gone right through the trap door if the thing had taken the time to eat me!"

"P-Professor S-s-nape!" Quirrell stuttered, his hand clasped over his heart, and Cassie wanted to punch him in the face, "I was m-merely g-g-going to m-make s-sure n-no one was g-g-going after the S-s-stone, as you w-w-ere - "

"Like hell you were!" Snape snarled.

"A-and wh-what w-were you d-doing here, Miss B-black?" Quirrell asked then. "F-funny, th-that the f-first d-day you're l-let out of c-c-confinement, a t-t-troll makes it's w-w-way in, and I f-f-find you h-h-here?"

Cassie was going to retort when they heard roars that sounded suspiciously like a large mountain troll, followed by the screams of children. Cassie helped Snape to his feet, and he cast a charm to make a splint around his injured leg. She saw Quirrell look back at the door to the forbidden corridor once, and Snape reached his hand out, grabbing Quirrell roughly by the back of the neck to point him in the right direction. He didn't have to say anything to threaten the man further, and they headed towards the commotion together.

They met up with McGonagall just as they were about to enter the bathroom containing the now unconscious troll and the trio of Gryffindors. Seeing that Harry, Ron, and Hermione were safe, Cassie stepped out into the hallway, letting the professors to their business, hoping she wouldn't be questioned by McGonagall for not being in the Slytherin common room.

She saw the first-years step out of the bathroom first, and Cassie couldn't help herself; she flung herself towards them, hugging all three of them at once. "Thank Merlin you're all okay!"

"Oi, what are you doing here?" Ron asked, obviously flustered by the whole ordeal.

"Never mind," Cassie said. "Just don't go chasing mountain trolls next time, yeah?"

The trio went on their way to the Gryffindor common room, and then McGonagall and Snape came out next. McGonagall, rather than questioning Cassie, breathed a sigh of relief.

"Black, get Professor Snape to the hospital wing, will you? I have to get Hagrid here so we can get rid of this damn thing!" she was saying, more to herself than to anyone else, and she started down the corridor. Cassie watched her go, then turned towards Snape.

"Quirrell's in there with it?"

"It's unconscious. He'll be fine." He took a step, and then his leg nearly buckled. Cassie reached out to steady him.

"I didn't realize the bite was that bad!" she said, growing concerned. "You weren't limping that much when we came down here."

"The bite is poisonous," Snape said, wincing as he took another step. "I have the antidote in my stores, I made a supply when I knew we'd be using a cerberus to guard the Stone."

"Okay, I'll get you to the hospital wing and then I'll go to your office - "

"No! No hospital wing," he said sharply, wincing as he continued to limp along. "The fewer people that know what's behind the door, the better."

"But Severus, your leg looks pretty bad - "

"No!" he barked at her. Cassie was thinking that he was just being prideful, that he didn't want Madam Pomfrey seeing him in this state, but she didn't want to argue. So she helped him make the slow, painful journey down to the dungeons, and she got him settled into his bed right away. Once she had his pants and the makeshift splint off, Cassie hurried to find the antidote in his stores.

He drank it without issue, and then she cleaned out the wound the best she could, before settling in beside him. She knew he needed to sleep, but when she looked at him, he looked like he was far from tired.

"So much for patrolling," she said lightly, and he snorted.

"You know what this means, don't you?" he said quietly. "He's after the Stone."

"Yeah," she said, resting her chin on his chest. "Can't say I'm surprised."

"Me either."

"What do you think he meant when he referenced it being my first day 'out of confinement', and a troll gets in?" she asked, but she wasn't sure she wanted to hear the answer. Snape looked at her silently for a few moments.

"Do you really want me to tell you?"

"Yes."

"That whatever he's got planned, he's going to frame you for it."

"Well, shit," she said quietly. "That's what I was afraid of."


	13. The Redhead Exes

Cassie woke up late into the night to make sure her indisposed lover took another dose of cerberus antidote. Expecting a swift interaction and then to be able to go back to sleep, she grew concerned when she noticed a sweet, sickening smell engulfing the room that she hadn't noticed earlier.

"Severus?" She gently touched the slumbering Head of Slytherin House's arm, hoping not to startle him awake. His pale bicep was slick with sweat, and she moved her hand to his forehead, finding that it was coated with perspiration. "Oh no," she whispered, and flicked her wrist, lighting the lamps next to the bed. She needed to get a better look at him.

His usual sallow complexion was looking especially haggard, and his raven hair was plastered to his face. She could tell that his breathing was ragged, and even without seeing his leg, she had a hunch as to where the new putrid smell was coming from. Uncovering him, she wasn't surprised that the wound was green and pus-filled, the surrounding skin an angry red and incredibly swollen. She had to get another dose of the antidote in him, and urgently.

"Severus," she said, grabbing the vial from the bedside table and uncorking it, "you need to wake up so you can drink this."

"You need to go back to the owlery," he mumbled, barely audible, not opening his eyes. "Ten points from butterbeer!"

"Okay then." He was incoherent, the poison making him delirious. She either had to figure it out now or get him to Madam Pomfrey. Knowing it probably would be fruitless, she brought the yellow elixir to his lips. He wouldn't drink, and within seconds he started snoring.

She went to his living room, looked through some shelves until she found an empty flask, and went to the bedroom. Grabbing her wand, she moved to his leg, the rotting smell of dying flesh making her gag momentarily. She started to wave her wand slowly over the wound, muttering a healing charm, and green and yellow liquid started to slowly rise out of his skin and into the waiting vial.

Snape started to grunt and writhe, as the movement of the thick sludge coming out of his flesh was painful. Cassie kept going, knowing that the bite needed to be cleaned.

"It hurts, stop," he murmured, his eyes starting to flutter open.

"We're almost finished, Severus," Cassie said softly. The flask was almost full, and his leg was already looking much healthier.

"Good. Then, can we go to the Black Lake? Maybe the giant squid will be out," Snape said, his speech much clearer, and Cassie was hopeful that he was pulling out of his feverish state. She didn't know why he was requesting to go out to the grounds in the middle of the night.

"Not now," she said, corking the flask full of her lover's pus. She walked over to the fireplace and tossed it in, and it shattered, the poisonous matter burning away with a high-pitched hiss. She went back over to the bed and started to dress the wound, a crisp clean bandage appearing from the end of her wand. "You need your rest first."

"Probably best," he responded, his eyes closed, and he started to settle back into the pillow. "Potter and his furry friends might be there."

"Oh?" Cassie said, not sure how else to respond, and she grabbed the antidote again. "Severus, I need you to sit up and open your eyes. You need to drink this, and then we both can go back to sleep."

His eyes fluttered open momentarily but closed again. She placed a hand behind his shoulder to help him sit up and placed the vial to his lips. "Please, you have to drink this, or I'll have to take you to Madam Pomfrey, I don't know how else to make you better."

"Anything for you, Lily." He slowly began to drink. Cassie tipped it back, so he got every last drop. She was taken aback, not sure who he was referring to.

"Okay," she said when he had finished it, letting him lie back. She put the empty bottle down and crawled in next to him, flicking her wrist and darkening the room once again. "You did good, Sev. Go to sleep."

"So nice to hear that from you," he whispered, and turned towards her, nestling his face into the nape of her neck. She noticed that he felt less diaphoretic, which pleased her.

"I suppose," she said quietly.

"Why has it taken so long for us to do this?" he asked. His tone was inquiring, almost childlike.

"What, Severus? Clean each other's gaping wounds?"

"This," he said. "Be in bed together, embrace. It's what I've wanted for so long, Lily."

Even though he was snuggled up to her and she had her arms around him, she suddenly felt stiff. Again, she didn't know how to respond to his disorientation. "Oh, I think we should just go to sleep. "

"You've forgotten about Potter?" he asked, and Cassie's mind went blank for a moment. Was he that out of it, that he was jumping from some childhood memory to one of his current students? Maybe she should take him to the hospital wing after all.

And then she suddenly made the connection. Snape went to school with, and hated, James Potter and his friends. That meant he was also classmates with James' wife, Lily. Was that who he was referring to? Cassie had never heard Snape reference her much before, other than the fact that the Dark Lord had murdered her. But then again, Snape didn't like to talk about his past in detail with Cassie.

Cassie swallowed hard, debating if she should play along, and maybe he'd fall asleep soon, or try to reason with him. "Sure, Severus. But you need your rest. Please, try to sleep, okay?"

"Alright." He didn't say anything after that. His breathing changed, signaling that he had drifted off. Cassie had a hard time falling into a peaceful slumber that night.

The morning came quickly, as they both had classes to get ready for. Cassie felt drained, but she snapped to attention as soon as she woke up, worried how Snape was doing. She breathed a sigh of relief when she laid eyes on him, as he no longer appeared sweaty, and his white skin looked a lot healthier.

"Severus," she said, touching his shoulder, and he woke up immediately.

"Morning," he muttered. She held her breath, waiting for him to call her someone else's name, wondering if he was still confused.

"I need to check your leg," She pulled the covers off him. "It looked pretty bad last night, I had to siphon out a lot of drainage last night. Do you remember any of it?"

His look of surprise gave her an answer. "No. Did I take my second dose of antidote?"

"After some coercing, yes." She opened the bandage and smiled, as the bite looked like it was healing. "Much better!"

"So you didn't go back to your dorm at all last night?"

"Of course not," Cassie said, raising an eyebrow. "I wasn't going to leave you in that state."

"Foolish!" he spat.

"Sev, you're the one who didn't want to go to the hospital wing. And you're lucky I stayed because you barely knew your own name last night. Your leg would have fallen off by this morning."

"Your dormmates are going to have noticed. I'm going to have to reprimand you when they report you missing all night," he said.

"So what? You'll have to give me detention," she said, shrugging. She was moving about the room, starting to get ready. Snape sat on the edge of the bed, then stood to gingerly test out his injured leg.

"Leave it to you, to _want_ detention," he muttered, limping his way to his bureau.

"If it's with you, then sure. And chances are, they won't say anything anyway," she said nonchalantly. She started to head towards the bathroom, intending to bathe.

"What makes you think that?" he asked, slowly following her.

"There were plenty of nights I was gone the last term. They're kind of used to it," she said, turning on the water to the bathtub.

"What?" he asked, his tone changing. She was regretting discussing the topic all of a sudden. "And what _exactly_ were you doing that you were gone all night?"

Cassie bit her bottom lip. Maybe if she stayed silent he'd forget what they were talking about.

" _Black!_ " he snarled. There was no way he was going to be forgetting anything that morning.

She sighed. "Are you asking me as my Head of House, or as my..."

"Your what? What does it matter?"

"Because we're getting into past relationship territory, Severus, and I don't know if we're ready for that - "

"It has nothing to do with that!" he barked, literal spit flying at her, and she folded her arms across her chest. "What I would like to know is what dangerous, imbecilic activities you were up to because Merlin knows you have a knack for them!"

"Nothing like that! I was just with Charlie some nights, okay?" He stared at her, and she couldn't tell if he was caught off guard or was so infuriated that he was at a loss for words. When he didn't speak for a few moments, she started to climb into the tub.

"Doing what?" he asked finally, his voice low and silky. He was trying to contain himself.

"Is that a trick question?" she asked, becoming annoyed. She suspected he was starting to grow jealous when he had no right to be. "What do you think we were doing?"

They were going about their morning rituals, but angrily. "So you were running about the castle in the middle of the night, getting your rocks off with the beloved Gryffindor Quidditch star, all the while maintaining such a squeaky-clean reputation with the staff, making us trust you - " he started in on her, and she knew when he was referring to 'the staff' trusting her, it was just him.

Annoyance turned to anger very quickly. "Oh, I wasn't just running around the castle, Professor Snape! _We_ were running around the grounds, even during the night, and _we_ were going into the Forbidden Forest. Do you remember that little clearing you found me in? That rock I was sitting on fits two people, you know!"

"I should give you detention from now until graduation!" he sneered at her.

"For what? Having a boyfriend before you?" she challenged, and he rounded on her, backing her up against the bathroom counter. His arms were planted on either side of her, keeping her from escaping his wrath.

"Is that what you think this is? That I'm jealous of some teenage, broom-riding, freckle-faced Weasley?" He looked so bitter that she barely believed that this man and the one cuddling up to her in bed last night was the same person.

"I don't know! Are you?" She went to duck under his arm and move away from him, but he blocked her. She glared at him, knowing he was just going to grow nastier with his insults unless they stopped the argument now.

"I'm disgusted," he sneered lowly, scrunching up his nose, "that to feel some sort of self-worth, you let some manky dimwit touch you."

"Lovely," Cassie said, sarcasm dripping from the word. "Now you'd better let me pass, Severus, before I make you!"

He moved and she stormed out of the bathroom. He followed closely, or at least as quickly as he could considering he was sporting a limp. "Was it the stimulating conversation an empty-headed Quidditch star can offer that appealed to you? Or maybe it was the impressive way he could _catch_ a _ball_ with his _hand?_ Lord knows that takes so much talent!" he was spewing as he came after her. Cassie took a deep breath, and feeling like her theory about Lily Potter was being proven true. She knew that James was a Quidditch player as well. Snape was projecting whatever school-age resentment he had leftover onto her.

She was trying to hold her tongue. Maybe if she just reached the door and got into the corridor, she could avoid the fight altogether, and he would cool off.

"Did he even know where to touch you?" Snape jeered. She knew he was lost in his head, probably not even realizing that he was talking to her, and not the memory of a girl from so long ago. "If you gave him a diagram, would he even know how to read it?"

"Severus!" Cassie shouted, turning towards him, infuriated now. He was looking at her, but it was like he was seeing through her. Even so, she couldn't help herself when she said, " _I'm not Lily!"_ and then stormed through the door.

He didn't chase after her. She didn't know what effect that jarring statement had on him, but he didn't make an appearance at breakfast. She heard murmurs in the halls that morning that Professor Snape was on the warpath during his lessons, and she dreaded having class with him that day. But even so, she worried about him.

The time for Potions came, and he stormed in like usual, going to stand in front of the class. "Buoyancy Solution, page one hundred twelve," he announced, his voice so low that it was barely audible. He didn't seem noticeably angry, which Cassie thought might be a good sign. She got started, thinking she was off to a decent start with chopping ingredients, when suddenly, the Potions Master was right behind her.

"Black," he hissed, "Forgot how to prep your ecklonia uniformly in the first two minutes, eh?"

"I - I don't think so - " she started, but he was on a mission, and he would not be deterred.

"Get out," he said, not needing to raise his voice. Every pair of eyes drifted their way, but no one dared say anything. Cassie was at a loss, knowing he was not in the mood for an argument. He wasn't even taking points or assigning detention, he just wanted her out of his sight. She packed up her station and left without a word.

She was able to keep a stiff upper lip for the remainder of the day. Her first instinct was to avoid him, but the more she thought about it, the more she felt compelled to see him. She didn't want to let this fester, or let a stupid argument ruin whatever it was they had between them. She wanted to fight for them.

After dinner, she went to the Potions classroom. When he looked up from the papers he was grading, his coal-black eyes were shooting daggers.

"Get out," he said in the same tone he had used in the class that day, but this time, it didn't have the same influence on her.

"No."

"It's not up for debate!"

"You're right," she said calmly, approaching his desk. "It's not, because I'm not leaving until we talk - "

"Out!" he shouted, standing suddenly. Cassie turned towards the door, waving her wand and slamming it shut, ensuring that they weren't going to be interrupted.

"This isn't how it works!" Cassie countered. "We're not leaving this unresolved, so we can avoid it, and then our relationship goes to shit!"

"What relationship?" he hissed at her, his eyes narrowing. Always trying to be cruel, to keep people at a distance. But she saw right through him.

"Don't do that. You think you're just going to hurt me, and then I'll leave, and then we can just go back to being miserable?"

"I was fine before we started this mess," he responded curtly. "I'll be fine after."

"Well, I won't be!" Cassie said, "because believe it or not, I care about you a great deal, actually! Even after you judged me unfairly for my past relationship like an immature asshole."

He was staring at her silently, and she could see the gears spinning in his head. Finally, he said, "How do you know?"

Cassie took a few seconds, wanting to be careful as they approached the topic. Obviously, he was sensitive about it. "I need you to be more specific."

"About her."

"Lily?"

He visibly flinched at her name being said out loud, like someone had slapped him. It made Cassie wanted to reach out to comfort him, but she stayed in her spot, sensing that he wouldn't respond to it well. "Yes, her!" he shouted.

"You thought I was her last night. When you were fevered."

He looked taken aback at the revelation, and then he sat down in his chair again. His eyes, which had been constricted in aggravation, widened in awe. Cassie let him have a few minutes of silence, not knowing what was going through his head, but assuming it was incredibly painful. Finally, he said, "I'm sorry."

Cassie went around the desk to him and squatted down so that their faces were level. She placed her hands in his, giving them a reassuring squeeze. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"No."

Cassie sighed but didn't press the issue. "We should look at your leg again, make sure it's not getting worse."

"I had Filch change the bandage earlier today," he replied. Not being able to help herself, she started to snigger.

"What?" he snapped.

"Bet it's not as fun having your pants off around him," she said, and he grabbed her, pulling the laughing girl into his lap and covering her with kisses.

* * *

Life at Hogwarts went on as usual for the next few days, or as usual as it could, considering that Cassie was secretly sleeping with her Potions professor. That, and she was pretty sure her Defense Against the Dark Arts professor was going to frame her for something sinister, not to mention that Hagrid had reported finding more unicorn blood in the Forbidden Forest. But Cassie also had her studies to worry about, assuming that she'd score high enough on her end of year exams to become an Auror, so she was staying pretty busy.

Nonetheless, she spent almost all of her spare time with Snape. When they spent time out in the open none of the staff or students questioned it, as their behavior wasn't any different from other school years. It was a plausible cover for them and this particular Tuesday night was no different. She was in his classroom, working on her homework as he brewed a nausea potion to restock the hospital wing. It was a simple elixir to make, especially for the Potions Master's abilities, but Cassie found herself distracted as she watched him practice his craft. He always got so engrossed in making his potions, his focus drawn to the bubbling liquid beneath him, scrupulous care given to every step. It was enthralling for her to witness it. And for whatever reason, tonight it made her want to jump his bones.

She cleared her throat, trying to get back into the grueling task of finishing her essay for Professor Vector's class. Tried, and then failed. Suddenly, she was standing, and then crossing over to Snape, intending to come up behind him, and wrap her arms around him. Maybe she'd reach down towards his crotch, get right to the point.

She was a few feet away from him when footsteps entering the classroom startled her. Professor Sprout came in unannounced, giving Cassie a friendly nod hello, and asked Snape about brewing a solution to help her snargaluff pods grow. Cassie went back to her seat, tried to get back to her homework, and found herself watching Snape as he chatted with Professor Sprout.

Now, she was watching him in awe as he interacted with his colleague. She was taking in his mannerisms, loving his calm demeanor as he spoke with someone he was comfortable with and even enjoyed being around. He was such a different person when he was with the other professors, versus when he was with the students. It was a marvelous thing to see.

She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. Boy, just being in the room with the man was distracting for her. She needed to get a hold of herself, something she repeated in her mind numerous times a day. But then she'd catch sight of him and his towering frame, and his commanding presence and dark features, and she'd find herself lost in him again.

That night, she had to go back to the common room early, as Snape had to patrol the corridors. But she had gotten an idea, something she'd execute during Potions the next day. It was something that she wasn't sure if she'd be able to go through with or not, but it made her heart pound and put a smile on her face.

Cassie did find her bravery, and as she waited for the Potions Master to enter his classroom that day, she found that her palms were especially sweaty and her heart was beating so swiftly that it might leap right out of her chest.

He burst into the room, swooping down the aisle, declaring what the lesson plan was for the day. She immediately caught his eye. She knew her plan had worked because he stuttered, if only for a bit, and kept going with his short lecture. Then the students were told to start on their potion.

Cassie had worked on a charm for the last week or so that revealed a rather provocative appearance, but only to an intended target, and today was the day that she had used it. To all of her classmates, she looked completely normal in her school uniform. But to Snape, her cleavage was exposed, her skin especially glowing and dewy. Her Slytherin skirt was so short, that when she bent over to pick up an item she might have accidentally dropped in front of Snape's desk, it revealed the bright purple thong she was wearing underneath. There was a particularly strong scent of her pheromones that wafted specifically towards him, and it didn't matter where he was standing.

She was glad that the potion they were brewing wasn't especially complicated, because most of her time was spent watching out of the corner of her eye for his reactions. He still walked around the room to critique the other students, but she was thrilled that he was circling her desk more frequently than usual, getting closer and closer to her every time he came to examine her work.

When the class was done, she made a point to take her time packing up, and she could tell that the Head of Slytherin was having a hard time keeping his mouth shut as he sat behind his desk, waiting for the last student to leave.

"What are you _doing?_ " he choked out, and Cassie smiled at him.

"What do you mean, Professor?"

He stood up, moving around the desk to approach her, a hungry look in his eyes. Cassie started to move towards the door.

"I'm sorry, Professor Snape, but I have to get to my next class," she said sweetly.

"My office, tonight," he said, his voice gravelly with need, and she smiled at him over her shoulder.

"Yes, sir," she answered him, playing her little game, and she knew she'd be in for it. For the rest of the day, she had a difficult time concentrating, knowing that she'd be with him that night, but it was the price to pay. She made a point not to look at him at dinner, just to aggravate him even more.

She knew it had worked as soon as she entered his office. He was sitting at his desk, and when she walked in, he flicked his wand, slammed the door shut, and locked it. She started to walk around the desk toward him.

"Stay where you are," he commanded, standing, and started to cast sound-shielding charms around the office. Cassie bit her lip nervously, but obeyed, staying in front of his desk. So far, they'd only had to make sure the classroom was sound-proof, not his office.

He walked behind her, then placed his hands on her shoulders, pushing her down towards the desk. "So you want to play games, do you, Miss Black?"

"Yes, Professor," she said, continuing to use the formality like earlier in the day. She giggled when he lifted up her skirt, revealing the bright purple thong and butt cheeks.

"You are a naughty thing," he purred, "Wearing something like this in _my_ class." He massaged her bottom, his warm hand on her skin making her moan with pleasure. "What do you think the boys who saw you were thinking?"

"I placed a charm, Professor," Cassie replied, smiling. "It's only for you."

"Is that so?" Snape said. "Regardless, I think you ought to be punished, distracting your professor like that."

"If that's what you choose, sir."

The warm hand left her bottom, and then came down with a hard smack, making Cassie cry out. She stood up in surprise, and Snape gripped her arm, pulling her around the desk with him. He sat down in his chair, pulling her across his lap, making sure her skirt was lifted up again. Then, without warning, he smacked her again, this time harder.

"Do you deserve this, Miss Black?" he asked her, his deep voice like warm butter as it reached her ears, a sharp contrast to the harsh stinging of his spanking.

"Yes, Professor Snape," she gasped, and his hand came down on her ass again and again. It hurt, but she was loving every second of it. Her cries that echoed around the dungeon room only seemed to spur him on, his blows alternating between firm and gentle. She knew her backside was going to have lasting imprints of his large hand, evidence of their secret activities. Just as she was sure she couldn't take another second of it, she felt him shift her panties over, and his fingers started to probe her. His thumb started to slowly circle her sensitive nub, two digits diving inside of her without pause. She started to pant, overtaken with pleasure, and he spoke again.

"You definitely don't deserve _this_ ," he said, his voice smooth and dangerous. She was about to agree with him, but found that she was unable to form coherent words at the moment. She cried out as she came instead.

When she stopped trembling, she pulled herself off his lap, coming to rest on her knees on the floor. Like a crazed woman, she started to work at getting his pants open and down, and soon she had his erection free and in her hands. She gave it a few long, firm strokes, and lowered her head, taking the tip of his cock into her mouth.

"Good girl," he groaned, tilting his head back, and the sound of his voice alone spurred her on. Bobbing her head up and down, she continued to pleasure him with her tongue and lips, enjoying the noises he was making just as much as he was enjoying the sensations she was giving him. When he finished, she swallowed every drop he gave her, and there they were in his office, a tired, panting mess once again.

"Well," Cassie said after a few minutes, "it's getting late, I'd better get back before the girls notice I'm gone for the night."

"Let them," Snape said, pulling her to her feet and into a tight embrace. "If they tattle, I'll just have to give you detention and we can do this all over again."


	14. The Mirror

It was Saturday morning, and not just any old Saturday morning. It was the day that Gryffindor and Slytherin would be facing off in a Quidditch match. Cassie had gotten to her dorm late the night before but had slept in her bed for once. Her dormmates were chatting excitedly about the upcoming game, anticipating an afternoon of entertainment. Much of the school had been buzzing in the previous week and not just because the rival houses were finally going to have a go at each other. Harry Potter was going to be playing in his first match as Seeker.

Cassie considered going, but tutoring hours needed to be offered and watching the sport never been a top priority for her, except for when she had been dating Charlie. So she volunteered to be in the library for most of the afternoon. Her fellow tutors were grateful, as even the ones that usually didn't care to go to were excited to see Potter play.

"So you're just going to sit in the library with Madam Pince all day?" Laanstra asked Cassie, scrunching up her nose in disgust. "I mean, it's not like any of the students are going to be inside doing their homework, they're all going to be at the game, too!" She leaned towards her mirror, getting a better look at herself so she could use her wand to apply eyeliner.

Cassie shrugged, then started to gather her long locks into a ponytail. "Maybe not. Even if one kid needs help, someone has to be there. And if it's slow, I'll just work on my homework."

"Well, you probably need the extra time," Danika piped up from across the room, giggling.

"What do you mean by that?" Cassie pulled on some robes over her uniform, but she knew where this conversation was headed.

"You're gone all hours of the night. Can't imagine you're off studying into the wee hours of the morning!" the Slytherin seventh-year continued, and the other girls in the dorm started to cackle along with her. Cassie rolled her eyes.

"No wonder she doesn't want to watch Quidditch," Laanstra said slyly, now applying a thick layer of bright red lipstick. "Reminds her too much of the previous Gryffindor seeker?"

"No, no," Danika guffawed, "with as busy as she's been, I reckon she's completely forgotten about Weasley!" More laughing. Cassie sighed, grabbed her bag laden with textbooks and headed towards the common room.

Laanstra, who had hastily finished putting on her full face of makeup so she could chase after her, pressed on. "Seriously now Black, who is the new boy-toy? Because we've been wracking our brains, and we can't figure it out! You didn't exactly keep Weasley a secret last year, so why sneak around with this one? Is it a Mudblood? Or a Hufflepuff?"

"Oh, just thought I'd give your fabulous minds a little exercise," Cassie said dryly, and the Slytherin prefect scoffed.

"You know Black, you really ought to be nicer to me, because I could just turn you over to Professor Snape for being gone all the time. Then your little romance will be over," the girl sneered at her.

Babbs, who had been sitting over by the fireplace with a few of his mates, suddenly got up and jumped over the couch to join the conversation. "Yeah, Black, and then you'd be free to fuck me. On second thought, maybe Laanstra and I should do our duty as prefects and turn you in!" he said, winking at her.

"Not in a million years, Babbs," Cassie replied coolly.

"What, can't get enough of blood traitor meat?" He grinned as he took a few steps towards her and ran his fingers through her hair. Everyone in the common room was watching the scene unfold now, and Cassie was ready to curse the lot of them.

"No, Babbs," Cassie said, reaching up to place a hand on the prefect's cheek, using the movement as a distraction as she slowly moved her free hand to her pocket. "I just don't date boys with itchy crotches."

Harrison looked taken aback, removing his hand from her hair. "What are you - " he started to question, and then her hex must have taken effect, because he started to wail, his hands going to grip his groin. The bystanders started to whoop and holler, as Slytherins typically found pleasure in each other's discomfort in times like these.

"Black, you bitch!" Babbs shrieked as Laanstra rushed to his side, but the girl also seemed apprehensive about touching him, and Cassie let out a snort of laughter.

"Better go see Madam Pomfrey, that doesn't seem good," Cassie said as she headed out, "after you rat me out to Professor Snape, of course." She was satisfied, even though she knew she'd be serving some detentions. Happy to be away from her housemates, she grimaced when she heard footsteps behind her only seconds later.

"Wait up, cousin!" She heard the out-of-breath voice of Draco, and her contentedness as quickly squashed.

"Good morning," she said, trying to hardest to be polite because most of their interactions quickly turned sour.

"Babbs is an idiot," Draco matched her stride as they walked through the dungeons. "But that was brilliant, what you did!"

"Saw that, did you?"

"I think the whole house saw that," he answered her. "You'd think they'd learn not to mess with you by now."

Cassie was wary, instantly suspicious that her first-year cousin was trying to butter her up for something. But she reminded herself that he was family, that this was his first year at the school, and that he would benefit from her influence. She tried to be patient.

"You'd think," she replied. "Not that I condone hexing other students, Draco."

Draco scoffed. "You have to teach me that one!"

Cassie sighed wearily. Maybe she wasn't such a good influence on him, after all. "Are you going to the match?"

"Well, yeah! Wouldn't want to miss Potter making a complete ass of himself, now would I?"

"You sound quite sure of yourself," Cassie replied as they ascended the staircase.

"He's never even been on a broom before coming here, there's no way he won't!" Draco exclaimed.

"Well, there must be a reason for picking him in his first year, don't you think?"

"Because he's Saint Potter," Draco snarled. "And Father agrees, no one would have given him a second thought if he wasn't the Boy Who Lived! Did you hear? Someone's given him a Nimbus 2000!" he kept going, and once her cousin had mentioned Lucius, Cassie started to tune him out. He kept complaining as they walked through the entrance hall and into breakfast, and she even had the pleasure of having him sit by her as she tried to eat, which was a rare occasion.

She glanced over at the Gryffindor table as Draco continued to drone on about the unfairness that was Potter being on the Gryffindor team. Harry looked like he was going to be sick, but it looked like the others around him were doing their best to comfort him. At least the boy had a support system.

Cassie knew that Snape was going to the game, as it would be odd for him not to attend when his own house was playing. But between the two of them, they were planning to keep an eye on Quirrell's whereabouts. Cassie still didn't know if the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor was going to the game, so she waited for Snape in the entrance hall to find out.

He pulled her aside as soon as he came out of the Great Hall. "He's going to the match," he murmured.

"Good," Cassie replied. "So he's not going to go after the Stone."

"Apparently not," Snape said, "Even so, I want you to go up to the third floor once or twice, just to make sure nothing is amiss. Can you do that?"

"Of course," Cassie said, a bit surprised, "But won't Dumbledore be in the castle?"

"Dumbledore asked me to keep an eye on Quirrell, and you by extension," Snape reminded her. "He might have his own matters to attend to."

"I expect part of your teacher's salary for this," Cassie smirked. She saw something glimmering in the professor's eyes, perhaps a snarky retort, but he kept it to himself. A group of students walked past them. Just as they were about to part ways for the day, she added, "Oh, and by the way, you'll probably need to put me in detention for the next week or so."

He raised an eyebrow. "Now what?" Harrison Babbs burst into the entrance hall from the dungeons stairwell, sweating profusely and still holding his loins in his hands, followed by a gaggle of Slytherins. As soon as they saw Snape and Cassie standing together, they started to rush over, Babbs looking like he was holding back tears.

"He deserved it!" Cassie said quickly, before stifling a laugh. The Slytherin prefect hobbled over towards the Head of House with his junk in his grasp.

"Just go!" Snape snapped, not looking thrilled with having to deal with the situation, and off Cassie went to the library.

As she had predicted, with the majority of the staff and students at the Quidditch pitch, the library was nearly empty. Cassie was able to get a good start on her homework that had been piling up since her evenings had been preoccupied. Twice, she mumbled something to the strict librarian about needing to stretch her legs and use the bathroom and ventured to the third floor to make sure nothing seemed out the ordinary. The second time she went, she even pressed her ear up the door and could hear the three-headed dog snoring away. So that meant Quirrell hadn't gotten brave enough to venture back to the castle while everyone was distracted at the game, at least not yet. Cassie figured the day was just a rather uneventful one and continued to work on memorizing advanced potion recipes.

The game ended, and she could hear students in the hallways speaking excitedly to one another. She expected a few to wander in for some homework help, but none did before her hours were up. She left the library to head back down to the dungeons. Only when she was back in the common room did she catch wind of Gryffindor winning the match, and what had happened.

"I told you all he'd make a complete fool of himself, nearly falling off his broom!" Draco was saying to Crabbe, Goyle, and a bunch of other first-years. "The arse barely knows how to fly!"

"And yet he still caught the Snitch, didn't he?" one of the older students groaned. "Doesn't matter that his broom went haywire, does it? Slytherin still lost!"

"Went haywire?" Cassie asked, interrupting. "What do you mean?"

Draco shrugged. "I guess a Nimbus 2000 is too much broom for the likes of Potter. It looked like it was trying to buck him off, nearly plummeted to his death. Rotten luck that he didn't."

Cassie immediately went to Snape's office. The students didn't seem to think Harry's broom acting up was a big deal, but it was. The charms cast on them prevented anything from interfering with them except for powerful Dark magic, which meant something malicious was done to it on purpose.

He was pacing his office when she entered, looking flustered. "Did someone see you inside the castle today?" he asked her, and she nodded.

"Madam Pince," she said. "What happened?"

"Quirrell jinxed the broom," Snape explained readily, his teeth bared, looking like he was ready to tear someone apart.

"It was him for sure?"

He ignored her question, continuing to pace. "I need to speak with Dumbledore. I followed Potter to Hagrid's, go there and make sure he gets back to the Gryffindor common room for the evening."

"You don't think Quirrell would try something again - "

"Just do it!" he snapped, and for a moment, Cassie was ready to tell him off for speaking to her in that manner. But she knew he was upset, having just watched someone try to murder his childhood friend's son in front of the whole school.

She took a split second to grab his hand and give it a quick squeeze. Then she was off at a run, because she didn't know what Quirrell was capable of at this point. Hopefully, once Snape and Dumbledore spoke, Quirrell would be arrested and taken from the castle, and then he would be out of their lives.

Hagrid's hut looked so cozy and unassuming from a distance. Cassie debated if she should just go inside, knowing Hagrid probably had some tea on. He would welcome her with open arms. But something in the air felt malevolent just then, and Cassie felt the need to be on alert. So she stayed a couple of hundred feet away from the hut, watching. The sun was starting to go down, and the trees in the Forbidden Forest were looked darker and taller, their branches looking like gnarled arms, adding to the ominous feeling she couldn't shake.

Cassie was slowly pacing, making sure she was seeing all angles of Hagrid's home. She was wondering how much longer Harry was going to stay when she turned towards the Forest again. She startled, as a figure was suddenly in her view. Quirrell, purple turban and all, was suddenly there, a few hundred feet in front of the tree line. How he had managed to appear there without making any noise, she didn't know.

He wasn't trying to hide the fact that he was there. Rather, he was looking right at her, a small, crooked smile on his face. Cassie was rooted to her spot, standing between the wizard and the hut that contained Harry, and she wasn't about to move.

"Professor," Cassie said politely, giving him a small nod.

"M-miss Black," he said, walking towards her. "W-what b-b-brings you out h-here?"

"Oh," she said nonchalantly, and she put her hand into her robes, pulling out her wand and leaving it poised at her side, "just out for an evening stroll."

He stopped walking immediately, eyeing her wand with apprehension. "I-I n-noticed y-you w-weren't a-at the match t-t-today," he replied. She noticed his right hand was clenching and releasing over and over, and she knew he was wondering if he should go for his wand. "S-stuck i-inside at the l-library?"

"What a funny thing to notice, considering how busy you were."

"I-I a-also n-notice," he said, and the small grin on his face grew ever so slightly, "Th-that y-you're out h-here, w-where Potter is, w-where th-there is n-no one around."

Cassie's stomach turned over. So that was his threat, to possibly kill Potter out here when no other witnesses were around besides Hagrid, and then blame her for it. Her wand was almost starting to vibrate in her hand as she anticipated its use. She didn't want to start something with the demented professor, but she wouldn't hesitate if need be. All she needed was a sign that he was going to go through with his plan.

Just then, she heard the creak of a door opening, and Hagrid's booming voice.

"Ah, Professor Quirrell!" he greeted warmly, "An' Cassie! What brings you two here?"

Cassie used Quirrell's stuttering to her advantage, quickly speaking over him. "Professor Quirrell was just telling me how much he was craving one of your rock cakes, Hagrid! But Professor McGonagall sent me to fetch Harry and bring him to the festivities in the common room." She glanced at Harry, who looked very tired as he squeezed past Hagrid. Ron and Hermione were also there. "And the other two, of course. Can't have a proper celebration without them."

"My rock cakes, o' course!" Hagrid said happily, gesturing for Quirrell to join him. Cassie hurried the trio of Gryffindors along as the disheartened-looking professor walked past them and into Hagrid's hut. She felt bad leaving Hagrid alone with the man but assumed he had no reason to harm the gentle half-giant without Harry there.

"Let's go," Cassie said, trying to keep a calm demeanor as they walked towards the castle. She kept casting glances back behind them, making sure there wasn't a suspicious-looking figure suddenly appearing along the treeline again. She half-listened to them talk about the game and Ron mentioning something about keeping an eye on Snape, but she was so focused on making sure that Quirrell didn't suddenly appear again that she didn't hear a lot of what they were saying.

She got them back to the Gryffindor common room, and once she knew they were climbing through the portrait, she went to Snape's quarters. She only had to wait for him for a few minutes before he joined her there, and he looked just as livid as when she had left him.

"Is Quirrell getting sacked?" Cassie asked ardently, standing up from the loveseat when he stormed in. "Can we watch?"

"No," he growled, his black cloak billowing behind him as he went straight for his small collection of liquor.

"Why not? Is it not proper etiquette to watch him get his ass dragged out of here?"

"No, he's not getting sacked!" he snarled, pouring himself a rather large drink, and taking a swig.

"What?" Cassie was dumbfounded. "How is that even possible?"

"Because the Headmaster said he's not, that's how it's possible!" Snape spat, and then he stormed into the bedroom, starting to pull off his cloak and robes.

"Is he off his rocker?"

"I think we've established long ago that he is," Snape replied curtly. "But for the time being, Quirrell needs to be closely observed."

"Did Dumbledore say why?"

"Albus Dumbledore has his reasons," Snape growled dangerously, "And for the time being, the likes of you and I are not privy to them."

"But he tried to kill Harry - "

"DON'T YOU THINK I KNOW THAT?" he roared. Cassie, who had walked up to him, intending to rub his shoulders to calm him, suddenly jumped back in surprise.

"Severus Snape!" she snapped, pointing a finger in his face, "Get yourself under control - "

He suddenly turned on her, grabbing the wrist of the hand that was pointing at him, roughly yanking it to her side. "I don't need some little girl in my quarters, telling me what to do!" he snarled, his face inches from hers. "Get out!"

"You really are an asshole sometimes, you know, that Severus?" she said, yanking her wrist from his grasp. "I'm not the enemy, here! I went to Hagrid's like you asked, and got Harry back to his common room - "

"Such an inconvenience, I'm sure!" he sneered, and she fought back the urge to punch him in the balls right then.

"And Quirrell showed up!" she exclaimed. "Appeared out of nowhere by the Dark Forest, commenting that there was no one around!" She stormed towards the living room. "Maybe next time, I'll leave you to do it, that way I won't get framed for murdering Harry freaking Potter - "

He had followed her grabbed her again, this time to stop her. "Wait, Cassie!"

"Oh, what?" she said, exasperated. "Now I get to stay? Will you make up your fucking mind?"

"I'm sorry, Cassie," he said.

"Good!" She pulled her arm from his iron-clad grip yet again. As she looked at him and his defeated stance, she debated if she should just leave for the night. But she decided against it, because even though she was sick of the frequent mood swings, all she wanted was his touch. She sighed, feeling a bit demoralized by her desire to want him near her even though he had just screamed at her. She gently grabbed his hand, leading him to the bedroom and pulling him into her arms.

Cassie knew they would be stepping up surveillance on Quirrell, but she had no idea the level that Snape had in mind until she witnessed his new obsession. She was certain that he was no longer sleeping. He patrolled the corridors at all hours of the night, even when other staff were on duty. Reminding him numerous times that his colleagues were capable of making sure nothing was amiss even without knowing everything they did, he would grow temperamental, shouting at her all over again. She was starting to spend more time in her dormitory. She wanted to help keep Harry and the Stone safe, but she needed to rest and keep concentrating on her studies as much as she could.

Her relationship with Snape continued but was strained, as he seemed to lose the ability to relax as he grew more and more sleep-deprived. Finally, a few days before Christmas break started, she decided she had enough of watching him bumble about, exhausted and miserable.

"I will patrol all night," she told him firmly as they were seated in his office, "and you are going to sleep all damn night, Sev!"

"You will do no such thing," he growled irritably. "What if you get caught, or Quirrell is up to something and frames you for it?"

"I'll be careful."

"I won't allow it!" he declared, propping his head in his hand, looking like he could barely keep himself awake. But his argument was futile, as she had already slipped a sleeping draught into the tea he had been sipping. As soon as she noticed him actually start to drift off, she went to his side, using a charm to keep him upright and floating off the ground a few inches, and she guided him to his bed.

Once she had him undressed and all tucked in for the night, she set off for her secret patrol. She could have gone without walking around the castle all night and nothing would have happened, as professors Flitwick and Trelawney were on duty, but she couldn't bring herself to breach Snape's trust any more than she already had. So off she went to make sure Quirrell wasn't somehow going to sneak into Gryffindor tower or the third floor corridor, hoping to not get caught while doing it.

For the first few hours, she didn't see either policing professors, and only had to sidestep into empty classrooms to avoid Peeves a couple of times. Her only concern was going back and forth between the Gryffindor common room and the third-floor corridor that housed the cerberus, as she assumed Potter wouldn't be aimlessly wandering the corridors that night. She was caught off guard then when around two in the morning, she rounded the corner and walked almost head-first into Dumbledore.

"Oh," she said in surprise, clutching at her heart. "Headmaster, I didn't expect to see you there!"

"Good evening, Miss Black," he said calmly, adorned in a deep purple sleeping robe, looking like he had just been taking a casual stroll. "Or shall I say, good morning? It's hard to judge at this time, isn't it?"

"Yes, I suppose," Cassie said, trying to muster a sincere smile, thinking she was in deep trouble now. "Headmaster, I was just - "

"Out patrolling at Professor Snape's request, I presume?" he asked casually. He pulled a caramel from his pocket, starting to unwrap it. At the blunt mention of Snape's fixation, Cassie let out an audible sigh of relief.

"Not really at his request," she confessed, looking around a bit, hoping that no one else was listening. "He needed to sleep, so I slipped him a sleeping draught. He didn't want me out doing this, in case someone caught me."

"Well, no harm done," Dumbledore said, placing the caramel in his mouth, the sticky candy muffling his speech some. He started to walk, and Cassie matched his easygoing stride, not sure what direction they were headed in. "As you are cognizant of sensitive information that most of the Hogwarts staff are not."

"Thank you, Headmaster," she said. "But I have to ask. Why am I?"

Dumbledore chewed on his candy for a moment, looking as if he were deep in thought, taking time before responding. "Severus is, as you know by now, one of my most trusted allies. I thought it important that he has someone that he can trust with the same burdens I bestow upon him."

Cassie nodded, feeling somewhat satisfied with the answer he gave her. "But, Headmaster - "

"You are wondering about Professor Quirrell," Dumbledore finished for her, "and why I have allowed him to stay."

"Yes, exactly that."

"Only time will reveal his true intentions. I must ask that you, like Severus, have patience and trust me for the time being."

Cassie stayed silent, wanting to argue with him, but knowing that it was best to keep her mouth shut. Not having paid attention to where they had been walking, Cassie noticed that they were outside of a classroom, and Dumbledore held out his arm, gesturing for her to go inside ahead of him.

"There is something that I must ask of you, Miss Black," he said. "It will only take a few minutes, and then I will allow you to head to your bed and get some much-needed rest."

Cassie went in, finding a dark, abandoned-looking classroom with desks and chairs piled high to the ceiling. In the center of it, was a magnificent mirror with a golden frame that stood to the ceiling.

"What is it?" she asked, her heart starting to pound in her chest, although she couldn't pinpoint the reason as to why. It looked pure and unassuming as it sat undisturbed in the middle of the room.

"I want you to go up to it," Dumbledore said quietly, not answering her question. "Look into it. Nothing more."

Cassie took a deep breath, taking a moment to look at the Headmaster. He was standing between her and the door, his long arms folded over his chest. He looked calm but defiant at the same time. She didn't know why she had the urge to flee, but she knew that there was no way he was going to allow her to do so right then.

She slowly moved towards the mirror and looked inside. At first, all she saw was herself standing timidly in front of it in her school robes, but then a background started to take shape. There was a toppled-over building behind her, and she started to move around the classroom to get a better look. When she recognized it, she gasped, as it looked like the ruined remains of the Ministry of Magic. Bits of smoking rubble were all around her and golden statues in pieces were strewn about, looking like it had been demolished.

Then she noticed two figures standing on either side of her, and when she recognized them, she screamed. To her left was her father, his serpent-like features unchanged since the last day she had seen him. His face was smug and proud, and he had his long-fingered, pale hand on her shoulder. To her right was Bellatrix, her wild dark curls over her shoulders, her beautiful face in a manic grin. Her arm was wrapped around Cassie's waist. Had they been anyone else, they might have looked like a happy little family of three. Cassie, however, wanted to puke.

"What is it?" she repeated, her voice shaking now. She wanted to pull her eyes away from the image, but she couldn't. Now, Lord Voldemort was bending down, picking up the head of a statue, throwing it towards a pile of rubble, and laughing heartily as it bounced around. Cassie was just glad that it wasn't a real person's head.

"What do you see?" Dumbledore asked. Had she looked at him, she would have seen the obvious concern etched on his features.

"Does it show the future?" she whispered.

"No," he said, and Cassie doubled over, trying to catch her breath. Dumbledore came to her side, helping her move away from the reflection. He took out his wand, magically pulling two chairs from one of the stacks so they could sit across from one another. "Cassie, what did you see?" 

Cassie looked up at him, wondering if it was against her better judgment to tell him. But she figured there was no way around it at this point. "I saw the Ministry, fallen. Completely in ruins."

She could tell that Dumbledore felt apprehensive at her answer, but was trying to hide it. "I see. And you were standing in front of it?"

"Yes."

"Alone?"

She was shaking now, trying to fight back the tears forming in her eyes. "No."

"Who was there with you?"

"My parents." Dumbledore was not able to hide his shock now, and Cassie wanted to flee. "Headmaster, what does it mean?"

He looked at her silently for a few moments before answering, drawing out her agony. Then, he said, "The Mirror of Erised shows us the deepest, most desperate desires of our hearts."

Dumbledore allowed her to leave the classroom alone then, not questioning whether she was going back to the Slytherin common room or not. Cassie, who left at a dead run with tears streaming down her face, didn't even know where she was heading, just knowing she had to get away.


	15. Into the Forest

Snape, who had not been afforded the whole night's rest that Cassie had intended for him, was now very much awake. He had roused out of his blissful slumber with a start around five in the morning, not really knowing why, and had immediately taken to the castle's corridors to continue his neurotic guarding of the Stone. There, he had swiftly run into an uncharacteristically purposeful looking Dumbledore, who had beckoned him to his office to discuss the matter of what Cassie had seen in the Mirror of Erised.

Snape, naturally, wasn't thrilled with the events of the night, especially because he had only been hearing about them after the fact.

"What were you thinking, Dumbledore?" he lashed out immediately. "You can't tell me that you felt the girl was going to see something _good_ in the blasted mirror, or you wouldn't have brought her there in the first place!"

"I was merely inquisitive, Severus, and as she was out on a stroll in the middle of the night anyway, I thought it might be a curious experiment," Dumbledore said casually, and the Headmaster's placid demeanor only enraged him further.

"You speak to me like I'm a buffoon, Dumbledore!" he growled, pacing yet again in front of the grand desk that his silver-haired companion sat at.

"I am well aware that you are not," the older wizard said, "and I think it wise that you calm yourself, as to keep this discussion as advantageous as possible."

"I am calm!" Snape shouted. "How could I not be, knowing that you ambushed my student in the middle of the night, taking her to a mirror that showed her over throwing the moronic government with her heinous, murdering parents that have fueled her nightmares since she was a child!"

"Severus," Dumbledore continued on calmly, but something changed in the delivery of his speech ever so slightly, his tone growing a bit more stern as he spoke to the distraught Head of Slytherin House. It was a fragile, but practiced dynamic that the two wizards shared, when Snape lost control of his emotions. It wasn't often that it happened, that Snape lost it in front of the Headmaster, but when he did, Dumbledore was an expert at the intricate steps he needed to take in order to maintain the younger man's confidence. "I did not predict, nor could I have, what Cassiopeia saw in that mirror. But I find it highly beneficial that we now have that information, that we know what is going on in her mind."

"Why?" Snape barked, and his black eyes were filled with fury as he turned towards the Headmaster, his lips curled in a menacing snarl. "Because now you have finally confirmed what you've always suspected, that she's dangerous? That she's always been destined to do the Dark Lord's bidding whether she realizes it or not?"

"I will not speak that truth into existence," Dumbledore countered, his delivery more firm, but still composed and even. "Now you are putting words into my mouth. But you know as well as I do, Severus, that Sybill made a rather ominous prediction about her, one that we cannot simply ignore because we have seen her grow into a rather likeable young woman."

"So what do you suggest we do, Dumbledore?" Snape said, his features wild, his hands itching to grab a hold of some of Dumbledore's personal possessions and start whipping them against the wall again. "Shall we put her down, like a rabid dog?"

"You misunderstand me completely," Dumbledore replied, and now his words were quiet, meek. "Severus, my intent was not to confirm my own suspicions that she is not to be trusted, or that she is plotting anything - "

"WHAT, THEN?" Snape shouted, and then he took a few seconds, trying to calm himself as the Headmaster had requested of him earlier in the conversation. He came to stand in front of the desk, halting his incessant pacing, and leaned forward, meeting his superior's gaze. "What was your intent, Dumbledore? Because I am at a loss, obviously!"

"Sybill's revelations about the girl aside," Dumbledore explained, "I wanted to see if whoever was trying to enter her mind and go through her memories had somehow influenced her. While it is possible that subconsciously she longs for the fall of the Ministry, I think her mental intruder may be to blame for what she saw."

Snape was silent for a few moments, Dumbledore's words stewing in his mind, and his features started to calm finally. Then he said, "And what if that's not the case? What if that's actually what she desires?"

"Then maybe being an Auror and working for the Ministry isn't the best choice for her," the Headmaster replied quietly. "But as her most recent interactions with our dear Minister have shown, that decision might be made for her."

"Training to be an Auror is _everything_ she's dreamed of, for such a long time," Snape said, shaking his head, looking rather disgusted. "If the Ministry denies that to her, for no reason other than her parentage, it will only fuel any animosity she has towards them. They might be inciting their own demise, if their downfall is what that prophecy was referring to!"

"So with either direction, we fear the same outcome," Dumbledore said, "which is why I encourage viewing Sybill's predictions through a lens of skepticism, so as not to lose all logic."

The two wizards were quiet for a few minutes, both lost in thought. For the first time in the young Slytherin witch's life, both men were thinking of the prophecy regarding her future, and considering actually informing her of its existence. Snape was the first to say it out loud: "Should we tell her?"

* * *

It was a cold night, but thankfully the sky was clear and full of stars as Cassie made her way across the grounds and towards the Forbidden Forest. They gave her enough light to guide her across the snowy ground without needing to pull out her wand and light a path, possibly alerting Hogwarts staff to her journey. And she was not in the mood to try to explain why she was heading towards the out of bounds forest when the moon was high and the dangers were likely to at their most vicious.

As she initially ran away from the classroom that contained the Mirror of Erised and Headmaster Dumbledore, she wasn't quite sure where she was headed, but even as she entered in the hallway, her mind was made up: she wanted answers to questions she had been barely conscious of having until now. But that experience had brought them screaming, fighting to the surface. So here she was, entering the trees at the same familiar spot she entered them so many times, but usually in the day light to find her favorite clearing with the jagged boulder. Those times, the forest looked so inviting, a place of solace for her. Tonight, even as she entered with a mindset of determination, it looked like the darkness and branches might swallow her up as soon as she entered.

Moving through the Dark Forest was difficult, as the ground was covered with rotting stumps and knotted roots. She found that in the night it was easy to trip over what was unseen in the dark and what was hidden under the snow. She followed the familiar path that she had taken so many times during the day, and once she knew she was in her favorite cherished spot, she took a few minutes to gather her thoughts and make a plan. She hadn't taken the extra time to go back to her dorm to get a few extra layers of warm clothing, so she needed to conjure some magical form of warmth. She did that quickly, using her wand to make a small blue flame that she cupped in her hands. The bright light would alert her presence to the residents of the forest, but that was part of her plan, anyway. She was just hoping she would find the friendlier ones before the more sinister ones came across her, first.

Cassie started to move away from the clearing that she knew and deeper into the trees, and apprehension made her turn and look back, made her wonder if this really was such a good idea. But then the fresh memory of Lord Voldemort gazing at her from the grand mirror flashed in her mind, his expression conceited and looking like he had won, something, somehow; what, she couldn't know, but she was determined to not let it happen.

What she sought after in the forest in those early hours was not something, but rather someone. She was looking for the local herd of centaurs, and more specifically, Firenze. In the past, when she had come across centaurs, it had not been intentional, and usually their interactions had not been amiable. But if she remained polite and had assured them that she would be on her way out of the forest, they would usually go about their business, and she with hers. That was, until, she ran into the younger, blond centaur, and he had instantly been more interested in her presence in his habitat.

It had been in her fifth year, and she had been in her usual spot with Charlie. The two had been there after a particularly grueling Quidditch match, and Charlie had just wanted to get away from everyone's constant stares and criticisms of how he had played. They had been on the rock together, talking about everything and nothing, kissing and cuddling, when they had heard the sound of hoof beats nearby. A group of four centaurs had come into view, looking rather restless once they spotted the teenage Hogwarts students. Cassie, who had interacted with them a few times before, greeted them immediately, told them that she and Charlie would be on their way back to the castle, and then Firenze, who had been staring at her without blinking, spoke.

"Heir of the Dark Lord," he said, giving her a slight nod, and Cassie felt stunned, as someone referring to her as Lord Voldemort's successor was not something she took kindly to. Even Charlie, who was usually slow to anger, started to flush at the brass way that the centaur had referred to his girlfriend.

"I'm no heir," Cassie replied swiftly, getting down from the large boulder. She usually bowed slightly to the centaurs, but forgot herself this time in her agitation.

"Potentially," Firenze said, a knowing look on his pale features, and the others with him started to grow anxious, stamping hooves and rearing up slightly.

"Firenze!" Bane boomed, "We do not speak of the future in front of humans, you know this!"

"But this young one's future is not set in the stars," Firenze replied, and his blue eyes broke their gaze from Cassie, moving skyward. "It is imperative that she knows that decisions will be thrust into her path, ones that will impact the carnage that she brings - "

"Enough," Ronan interjected sadly, cutting off his younger companion, although not nearly as impudently as Bane did.

By then, Cassie had heard plenty, and her Gryffindor beau had known it without her having to say anything; he had already grabbed her hand, muttered some civilized goodbyes to the centaurs and had started to pull her away from the clearing and towards the castle as quickly as he could through the trees. Those haunting words had been something that she had replayed in her head, over and over for the next year or so before she had gradually told herself that there was no way they were true, that divination and anything related was unreliable and frivolous. It was the only thing, along with Charlie's reassurance that there was no way she was going to bring carnage upon anyone, that kept her from losing her mind.

But now, as she pushed on through the chilled night air, trying to find prints, straining to hear any noise that would alert her to their close proximity, she was not nearly as sure. The image of a fallen Ministry of Magic sure seemed like it would go hand in hand with bloodshed and despair. And while Dumbledore had told her that the mirror did not necessarily show the future, she didn't think it a coincidence that Firenze's words and what she had seen had been so similar.

It seemed like she was walking for endless hours, and yet the sun was still not starting to rise, so she knew it was still very early morning. She couldn't really know how far into the forest she had journeyed, and was just starting to wonder if she was going to end up being lost in there for days, shivering and despondent, when she heard hooves. Muffled from traveling on frozen ground, but nearby. Cassie's heart began to soar, and yet beat wildly, because she knew she was trespassing into their territory.

"Offspring of the Terrible One," she heard the deep voice of Bane, and then she was surrounded by six centaurs. She kept the flame near her, for she desperately needed it to stay warm just then, but didn't dare take out her wand and appear like she was any sort of threat to them. She immediately went into a deep bow. "You are unexpected in our forest, especially at this time, and alone."

"She is lost," Ronan added, in his same melodramatic tone as always.

"I am lost," Cassie said, "But was also searching for you. You can't begin to imagine how pleased I am to have found you - "

" _You_ found _us!_ " Bane said. "The very concept is absurd. Had we not come across you, you would have been walking in circles for a week and perished in this harsh cold."

"You're right," Cassie said, keeping her eyes cast to the ground, hoping they would find her demeanor sincere. "You're absolutely right."

"What reason would a student from the castle have for seeking us out?" Ronan asked then, and Cassie breathed a small sigh of relief, glad they were off the topic of Bane's pride.

"I know I have nothing to offer you in return," she started, hoping her choice of words wouldn't offend any of them. "But I was wishing to speak with Firenze, if he is agreeable."

Bane, Ronan, and the rest of the centaurs began to banter softly among each other, and then she started to grow quite nervous. Her instinct was to go for her wand, but she knew it would be an incredibly stupid move, so she kept her hand at her side, taking deep breaths, trying to stay calm. If they attacked, she would just have to try to get to it as quickly as her frozen fingers would allow.

Bane was taking some steps towards her. She still kept her eyes on the ground, fixing them on a tree stump. "For what purpose, young human?" Cassie inhaled deeply, hoping she would find the right words, and as she was about to speak, Bane suddenly commanded, "Look at me, human!" Cassie obeyed, raising her head, letting her eyes meet his stern ones, and then she choked as his large hand shot out, grabbing her by the throat. He lifted her from the ground by her neck as if she weighed as much as a feather, just enough so that their eyes were level. Still, her shoes were dangling several feet from the forest floor, and her hands instinctively went to grasp the one that was around her neck.

"You seek out the prognostication made by Firenze from those years ago, the one you ran from," he said, his dark eyes narrowing as Cassie choked and sputtered, trying to draw breath. Still, she willed herself not to reach for her wand, knowing he could likely crush her windpipe before she managed to successfully land a proper curse. She could neither speak, nor nod, and was left hanging in the centaur's maddened grip. "We owe no humans the knowledge of our predictions!"

"We might not owe the humans," came another voice, and a white-blond, palomino centaur came into view; Firenze had finally made an appearance. Cassie would have been thrilled had it not been for the lack of oxygen threatening to make her slip into oblivion shortly. "But we owe it to our species to allow this one to choose the most righteous path." He came up beside Bane, and then placed a hand gently on the arm that was holding Cassie. "Bane, that's enough. She's no good to either side if you kill her now."

Bane suddenly loosened his grip, and Cassie fell to the ground in a heap, taking her first uninhibited breath in a rattling wheeze. "Perhaps we'd all be better off knowing she can't choose either path, for humans have poor insight into what is righteous and what is not," he grumbled. But Firenze must have convinced him not to kill her, because he started to slowly turn and walk away from her, the other centaurs following suit, disappearing from view into the darkness.

"Please forgive Bane's brutality," Firenze said quietly, offering Cassie a hand. She took it tentatively, massaging her bruised neck as he helped her get to her feet.

"He's just being careful," she said. "I can hardly blame him."

"You are patient, for a human," he said.

"Depends on the day."

"So what changed, young witch?" Firenze asked, as Cassie folded her arms around her torso, trying to keep warm as they stood among the dense oaks. The centaur's light features almost seemed angelic among the snow covered branches around them. "Why seek out the foretold now, after this much time?"

"I learned something...distressing, about myself. Are you familiar with the Mirror of Erised?"

"I am not."

"You look into it, and it shows you your deepest desires," she said. The centaur had started to slowly walk, and she followed, assuming he was going in the direction of the castle grounds, at least she hoped. "I saw the Ministry of Magic fallen, and the Dark Lord returned, along with my mother. I was with them."

"I don't understand," Firenze said, ducking under a low branch without having to look at it, knowing the forest so well. "If it is your deepest desire, then what is so upsetting?"

"It's _not_ my deepest desire," Cassie said, "or my desire at all! At least, I don't think so! Him returning, and being with them, it's sickening to even think about. But after seeing that in the mirror, and remembering what you said to me that day...I can't help but wonder..."

"If you're destined for that future?" Firenze asked, and Cassie nodded slowly. "You are worried that you won't be able to change it."

"Yes."

"But I told you, young one. Your future is not set," Firenze said gently.

"But you said, that I will bring carnage," Cassie pointed out.

"And you will," Firenze replied evenly, and Cassie's heart dropped. "In what I've seen and read in the stars, you will lead a great legion in the upcoming war. But it is not determined for what side."

"So you know there will be a war," Cassie said lowly. "My father, he'll return?"

"Oh, yes," Firenze said. "Bane and the others would not like me telling a human, of course."

Cassie felt like she was going to vomit right then. "So he'll come back, and then what? He'll convince me to go to him?"

"I do not know anything of the sort," Firenze replied. "That is where your decisions come in." Cassie nearly tripped on a root, and he caught her, steadying her before she fell into the snow. "Your power, young human, lies in your choices."

"But what if I choose not to help either side?" she asked quietly. "What if I don't want to lead an army or massacre people?"

Firenze suddenly stopped walking, as they had reached a clearing, and looked up into the night sky again. There were still no clouds in sight, and the stars were shining brightly. Cassie hoped that because they were so dazzling right then, he'd be able to pluck a clear answer out of them for her easily, tell her something comforting.

"I have not accounted for that choice," he muttered after a few minutes. Cassie was so cold, she was sure her toes had to be blue by now. "But I am sure no power lies within it."

Firenze helped her to find her familiar clearing and then bid her farewell. Cassie was more than grateful for the centaur's cooperativeness, although she didn't feel any more at peace with what he had told her than when she had entered the forest. She told him many times before parting ways that if there was ever anything she could help him with, to tell Hagrid, and she would be in the forest to help in any way that she could. She couldn't tell if he would ever take her up on that offer or not.

She was so tired once she reached the edge of the forest, she hadn't really thought about whether or not anyone would see her coming across the grounds, so when Hagrid suddenly burst from his hut as soon as she came out of the trees, she was a little startled.

"Cass!" he bellowed, lumbering towards her with a large, cozy looking blanket that he must have pulled from his hut. "What are ya doin', coming out of the forest, 'specially this time of mornin'?"

"Oh, Hagrid," she said, so grateful for the warmth and softness as he wrapped her in it and scooped her up, carrying her straight to his home. "I'm so happy to see you!"

"I'd get you back to the castle straight o' way, 'cept it looks like you need a bit o' warmin' up," Hagrid muttered, and he burst through his door, placing her in a chair in front of his fire place. "Yer lips are blue!"

"Yeah," Cassie said, realizing now that her entire body was shivering. "And probably my toes."

"What were ya doin'?"

"Visiting the centaurs," she said truthfully, finding no reason to lie to the half-giant, especially since the creatures would probably fill him in of their encounter the next time they saw him. Hagrid was flabbergasted, and she gave him a few vague answers, feeling so tired that she started to doze off in front of the fire. He must have let her have a bit of a nap, because when she woke up next, it was completely light out. He carried her part way across the grounds, then made her walk, probably wanting to give her a chance to wake up some before she got into the castle and potentially had to field questions from other students.

After thanking Hagrid profusely, Cassie parted ways with him in the entry hall, and then she started to make her way towards the dungeons. It looked like breakfast was long over and classes had already started, as most of the corridors were already deserted. She had intended to go back to her dorms for a change of clothing, but her plans were immediately interrupted by a rather panicked looking Potions Master.

" _Cassie!_ " he hissed quietly as he nearly jogged up to her, even though there was no one else around. "Where in the _hell_ were you?"

"Don't you have class?" she countered calmly. He looked like he was about to answer, and rather angrily, when his eyes landed on the fresh bruises that were around her pale neck. Without speaking, he placed a hand between her shoulder blades and guided her towards one of the empty classrooms. Because Professor Sprout was substituting second-year Potions while Snape was out looking for Cassie, they went into a room that had previously been used solely when Filch was in charge of detentions.

"I hadn't realized you were gone," he growled after settling her into a rickety wooden chair and closing the door, "Until McGonagall noticed that you hadn't showed up to class. Then I talked to your dorm mates, and they said you hadn't been to bed all night!"

"Yeah," Cassie replied, settling into the chair; all she wanted to do right then was sleep.

"So?" Snape said irritably. "And I repeat: Where _were you?"_

_"_ The Forbidden Forest," Cassie said, and Snape looked like his black eyes were going to pop out of his head.

"Doing _what?"_

She sighed, the anger on his features growing tenfold, and then she recounted the story. He had started out by standing while she was talking, but was sitting across from her by the time she spoke of the first time Firenze mentioned his predictions; by the time she told Snape of what she had learned only hours ago, he looked like he had seen a ghost.

"Well?" Cassie said, knowing her next words were going to just piss off the Potions Master. "Can I go to bed now?"

"Cassie," he growled lowly, "Stop acting like this is all a game!"

"I'm not," she said, rolling her eyes. "Severus, I'm just exhausted, alright? I traipsed through the cold, dark forest all night - "

"Like a damn idiot!"

"Thanks for that," Cassie said, grimacing slightly, "And trying to take this all in...I just need to process it all."

"Do you realize," Snape said, his voice quiet and dangerous, letting Cassie know that he was nearly at his boiling point, that he was about to erupt at any second, "what those centaurs could have done to you? How stupid it was to just run in there, alone? Without telling anyone?"

"It was stupid, I admit," Cassie said lightly, "But I'm fine - "

"Look at your damn neck!" he snarled, looking absolutely livid. "You're lucky we're not out there looking for your cold, dead body!"

"Severus!" Cassie countered, feeling much more awake the more annoyed she got, "Me going into the forest is completely beside the point!"

"Oh, really? Then what, besides the fact that you're a reckless, harebrained risk-taker, is the point? I have enough to worry about around here, and then you go off doing something this dangerous!"

"Oh my god!" Cassie exclaimed, getting up from her chair suddenly, feeling exasperated with the older wizard and his temper tantrums. "I realize that you're stressed out, Severus, but this is not about you! At all! This is about the fact that I'm supposed to, I don't know, lead a fucking army that kills a whole shit load of people? Does that not warrant a little bit of your time?!" She started to pace, and Snape remained seated, suddenly falling silent at her rant. He looked calm as he watched her, and his change in disposition irked her for some reason, making her grow even more agitated. "And the best thing is, Severus, is that I don't even know _who_ I'm going to be killing! Isn't that great? Maybe, I'm going to turn to the other side when the time comes, and I'll be murdering all of my classmates and their loved ones, won't that be something?"

"Cassie," Snape said, his rich voice reverberating in the abandoned dungeon, but it barely registered to her. "Why would you ever think that would be what happens?"

"Don't do that," she said, glaring at him. "Don't pretend like you didn't talk to Dumbledore, like you don't _know_ what I saw in the fucking mirror!"

"Cassie, just because you saw something in the Mirror of Erised, doesn't mean any of it will come true, it doesn't show the future - "

"No, but it showed me something that I want, that I didn't realize that I did!" she shrieked, and then Snape was on his feet, grabbing her face in his hands, trying to lock his eyes onto hers so he could ground her.

"Cassie!" he said firmly, and after a few seconds, her blue eyes found his, and he knew she was listening to him for at least a moment. "Dumbledore and I think that your night time intruder may have planted that image into your head. It might not be your desire _at all!"_

Tears were pouring down her face, blurring her vision as she tried to focus on the man in front of her, the man that she loved so much that was trying to keep her from completely losing herself. "But what if it is," she whispered, sobbing now. "What if, when my father comes back, I go to him?"

"You won't!"

"But it would be so much easier," she hissed, her face darkening as she said it. "Everyone already expects it out of me, and so many people already hate me! Why not just do what they believe I will?"

"Cassie," Snape said, and he sounded so sorrowful as he said her name again, going to plant soft kisses on her tear-stained face as he continued to hold her face in his hands. "You've never been someone that just does something because it's easy."

"But what if I do?" Cassie asked weakly. "What if I do, and then I lead an army that slaughters innocent people?"

"I won't let that happen," Snape said reassuringly. He was sure then, that someone had intended to get into her head, and had done it rather successfully. The girl was a shaking, weeping mess, and when he was sure that Sprout had likely dismissed the students in his Potions classroom, he led her through it, into his office, and then finally into his quarters. He settled her into his bed, making sure she was comfortable and asleep, before going to teach the rest of his classes for the day.

He didn't tell her, but his intention for that day had been to reveal to her the prophecy that Sybill Trelawney had made about her years ago. He knew that Dumbledore might be displeased about his decision not to go through with it, but as the young Slytherin had already discovered the basis of the prediction for herself through the centaurs, he figured it didn't pay to upset her more to hear it through another source. But he assumed it would only be a matter of time before she would find out that he and Dumbledore knew and didn't tell her, and that it would rattle the trust between the two of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovely readers! Just wanting to say thanks to everyone who takes the time to read, leave kudos, and comment. Just letting you know that I intend to keep putting out chapters once or twice a week. I'm trying to find a good balance between plot and the sultry stuff...if there are scenarios you are looking to see, let me know, and if they fit I might be able to make them work!  
> When I started this story, I intended for it to go at least into the Deathly Hallows. So far, I'm going strong and having so much fun writing it, I hope I can keep going with it at least that far! Thanks again for reading. :)


	16. Towers and Grandfathers

The only reason that Cassie was able to muddle through the next two days of classes was because she knew the holiday break was going to be starting soon. She was certain that she was headed for some sort of break down, her emotions seemingly on constant edge. No matter how much she meditated, how many times she tried to clear her mind and forget about what she had learned in the Forbidden Forest only nights ago, she couldn't seem to shake a sense of foreboding. She found herself lost in thought often, searching introspectively when instead she should have been paying attention in class and copying notes. Other students would speak to her, or brush past her, and she would startle dramatically. If she would have been keeping tally of people asking her if she was okay or looking at her like she had lost her marbles, she would have lost count.

The last three years she had spent the entirety of her holiday break at the Burrow, but since Molly and Arthur would be going to Romania this year to see Charlie, she would be spending the majority of it at Hogwarts. She would have been glad to have a reason to leave the castle and have a change of scenery, but was also thrilled to have a valid reason to stay there and be around Snape. Right then, he was her anchor, the only thing keeping her from spiraling out of control, and they both knew it. So when Cassie was done with her very last lecture before holiday break actually started, she went straight to his office. But he wasn't there, so she took out her Transfiguration textbook to review the chapters McGonagall had just gone over, and waited for him.

Within minutes, Cassie was reading the same few sentences over and over, not taking any of it in, and once she realized it, she slammed the book shut and sighed in frustration. She knew trying to be productive at the moment was useless. So she waited for Snape to come to his office, not knowing what he was doing at the moment or when he would be back, and when she realized she had didn't have the patience to just sit there with nothing but her tortured thoughts about what her future might hold, she abruptly got up and left.

She stormed through the dungeons, not sure where she was headed, not making eye contact with any of the students that were happily chattering away about the upcoming break. "Cass!" she heard suddenly, and tried to ignore it whomever the voice belonged to, but then felt a hand tugging on the sleeve of her robes.

"What?" she snapped, intending to unfairly intimidate the rude person who had dared interrupt her aimless jaunt, but saw it was Draco.

"I called your name three times," he grumbled, as if her inadvertence was the most cumbersome thing in the world, and Cassie rolled her eyes.

"I was distracted," she said, folding her arms over her chest, trying to show him that she was not in the mood to deal with his usual egotistical attitude. "What do you want?"

"It's about Christmas," he said. "Mother wanted me to ask you if you wanted to stay over for the holidays - "

"I've already replied to her letter," Cassie said, "and the answer is no." It was true that Narcissa had invited her to spend the break at Malfoy Manor; why, Cassie had no idea, as they hadn't exactly left things on good terms. But Cassie had zero interest in seeing her aunt or uncle any time soon if she didn't have to.

"But she said it would mean a lot to her and Father," Draco said, and Cassie looked at him in slight surprise, as there was a small change in his demeanor, his usual aloof drawl sounding somewhat sincere.

"She actually said that?" Cassie asked, sounding as skeptical as she felt.

"Yes," Draco insisted. "She told me that you said no, but she kept pestering me to ask you again, wrote me three times in the last week in a half."

"And you're just coming to me now, the day before you're heading out?" Cassie said, shaking her head. "Well, the answer is still no, Draco. I'm staying here, and I'm going to Andromeda's on Christmas Day."

"Father won't allow it - "

"He doesn't have a say!" Cassie snapped, her temper flaring as she glared at her younger cousin. "Now, leave me the hell alone, Draco." She started to walk away from him.

"Please?" she heard him say, although somewhat quietly, and she turned to look at him, not believing that she heard the word uttered from his lips. "At least for Christmas Eve, Cass? Grandfather's going to be there, you know how much of a prig he is." He was referring to Lucius' father Abraxas, and Cassie was well aware how much of a contemptible person the older Malfoy was, especially towards his only grandson. Cassie sighed, her heartstrings suddenly pulled as she saw the earnest, pleading look on her cousin's face.

"Fine," she said, sighing. She hated herself for agreeing to it, because she hated being at Malfoy Manor and everything that it stood for. But at the same time, she couldn't deny that there was always at least a very small soft spot for her eleven-year old cousin, if for only the reason that he was not yet completely ruined. "I'll be there to buffer for you. But only Christmas Eve."

The usual smug quality returned to his features then, and Cassie felt a twinge of regret as she bade him farewell and continued on her way. But even with the distraction of knowing she had the displeasure of seeing the Malfoys on Christmas Eve to look forward to, her usual worries came flooding back.

Maybe she shouldn't be around Lucius and Narcissa. They'd only influence her negatively, help push her towards the wrong side, make her _want_ to go to her father when the time came.

_When_ , not _if,_ he came back. Cassie shuddered as that realization went through her mind for the hundredth time since she had spoken to Firenze. Her feet continued to carry her through the castle of their own accord as her mind churned along, making her question whether she should continue on with her Hogwarts education or quit now, perhaps flee the country, get away from all of this and everything she knew, so there would be no temptation, no opportunity for her to fall completely into the Dark Arts and contribute to the deaths of innocents.

She was pulled out of her soul-searching for a moment when she found herself at the base of the Astronomy Tower, and when she realized where she was, she began to climb it without hesitation. The higher she went, the clearer her mind seemed to become in the cold winter air, and then she came to the top. She took a deep breath, going to the edge of the balcony to take in the sight of the grounds. Students that looked like tiny black specks from up there were moving about, spending some last minute time together before the holidays began. Most of them were in groups, friends that loved and supported one another, who would miss each other over the break. It made Cassie wish she could have a life like that, something that simplistic where all she had to worry about was grades and friends and dating. Instead, she was up here alone, anticipating a war that she knew would come some day, that her father would be responsible for, that she wish she could stop but had no idea how to do so.

"It's a view like this, that can make one feel so small and insignificant," came a soft voice, and Cassie gasped in surprise, pulling away from the balcony. She turned to see Dumbledore standing behind her, looking calm and collected like usual, adorned in rich cherry colored robes that looked much warmer than what she currently had on.

"Headmaster," Cassie greeted, giving him a meek smile and feeling quite awkward, as the last interaction they had shared had been when she had looked into the Mirror of Erised.

"You came up here seeking clarity, Miss Black?" he asked, slowly coming up beside her, seemingly looking out at the grounds as she had just been doing not moments before.

"Yes, sir," she said. She wanted to leave, as she was still very much in the mood for solitude, but didn't want to be rude to the older wizard.

"Have you found it?"

Cassie scoffed. "No. Not in the slightest."

Dumbledore nodded, leaning forward slightly as if to get a better look at a group of students that were starting to partake in a snowball fight down by the Black Lake. Cassie felt a pang of jealousy at their effervescence. "Miss Black, I'd like to discuss with you the other night, what you saw in the mirror," he started, and Cassie instantly felt her guard go up, wanting to flee from him again.

"I don't."

"But at times, we must do what we don't want to," he said, turning to look at her, and she knew there was no use trying to argue with the great wizard. "Will you have this conversation with me, Miss Black? And then I will let you start your holiday break, along with the rest of the students."

"Yes, Headmaster."

"Thank you for your cooperation," he said kindly. "I just want to reiterate to you, that I don't necessarily believe what you saw, is actually of your own subconscious - "

"Professor Snape already ran that theory by me," Cassie said, trying to keep herself calm as they approached the sensitive topic. "And I'm glad that you have confidence in me, Headmaster, I really am. But I'm not so sure."

"Yes, Severus has informed me that you are doubting yourself, and your ability to stay true to your convictions. But I believe that whoever was going through your memories at night, and whoever was trying to use Legilimency on you during the day was _trying_ to make you feel this way, to make you question your heart."

"Well, they were successful," Cassie said, "Because they got to me, and here I am, confused as all hell! I must be a lot weaker than you anticipated!"

"But you're not, Miss Black," Dumbledore countered, "You're not weak, not at all, and it's important that you don't let yourself feel that way."

"Why?" Cassie asked quietly. "Why is it important?"

Dumbledore observed her for a few moments before responding. "You must have assumed by now that Severus has informed me of what you learned from the centaurs the other night."

"Yes, of course," Cassie said, her voice still calm, but feeling her exasperation flare. "I'm well aware that the two of you discuss me behind my back and I only get to hear what you decide to divulge."

He raised his eyebrows slightly as he looked at her, obviously surprised at her boldness. "Then it is common knowledge among the three of us that Lord Voldemort will rise again, Miss Black. Part of the prophecy that you heard from the centaurs, while alarming to hear, I'm sure, was not new information for Severus and I. Even from the night that he lost his powers, I have been anticipating his return to power, and with it another war. So what we must prepare for, then, is that you will have a vital role in it."

"A vital role in it," Cassie said, "But for what side, Headmaster? That's still up in the air! What if he returns, and I go to his side, and then you're having to fight me on top of everything else?"

"You say it like you have no choice in the matter, Cassiopeia," Dumbledore said gently, and Cassie wondered how he kept his cool during conversations like these. "Like you'll just be a passive bystander when you decide what to fight against, when that won't be the case at all."

"Maybe it would just be better if I'm not a part of the equation," Cassie replied dully.

"Alright," Dumbledore said, looking at her over his half moon spectacles, "Then what do you suggest? How do we solve that problem?"

"I'll leave the country," she said. "To another continent, go across the globe."

"Who's to say that would stop your father from coming there to fetch you?" Dumbledore challenged lightly. "And then you'd be alone, much more likely to sway to his influences."

"Erase my memories," Cassie said. "I'd have no opinions of any of this, no one would have any clue who I was, I could get lost in a big city - "

"And then he'd find you, brainwash you, and you'd have the same powers you have now. He'd use you to do all of his bidding," Dumbledore countered. "Sticking your head in the sand is not the answer. Your memories make you who you are and remind you why you believe what you believe, Cassiopeia."

"If you knew what I've seen," Cassie said through gritted teeth, and she barely knew that she was starting to pace in front of the Headmaster like a caged animal, "You wouldn't be saying that. And since the mirror, I've been reliving it all in my dreams, all the horrors I saw as a child!"

"Then use it!" Dumbledore said, stopping her pacing by placing his hands on her shoulders. "Use those emotions, channel them, realize that you _aren't_ weak, but you're _strong,_ Cassiopeia! That when the time comes, you'll remember the pain and suffering that your father and his followers inflicted, and you'll want to return it to _them!_ "

Cassie closed her eyes, trying to keep herself calm, because now she had images of a nightmare from the night before flashing through her mind. It stemmed from the memory of her father torturing a Muggle in front of her, something that had been intended to be 'educational' for her; he had been using a curse to slowly, agonizingly burn skin from the man, inch by inch, and he was screaming, pleading for death as Voldemort moved from his limbs, to his torso, to his face. The nightmare had seemed to last for hours, just as it had in real life.

She inhaled slowly, exhaled, then was able to push the image from her mind. When she opened her eyes again, meeting her Headmaster's gaze, she said, "You don't understand. That day in Hogsmeade, Headmaster, I was about to lose control...I don't know what I was about to do to that man that tried to use the Unforgivables on me, I don't know if I was about to just hurt him, or kill him, but I was so angry! If the professors hadn't intervened - "

"Then you'll learn to channel it," Dumbledore said. "Keep the outrage, but direct it to where it would be the most useful."

Cassie looked at him, astounded at his bluntness. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were grooming me as a weapon, Headmaster."

She wanted him to deny it, to get offended by the suggestion, because even the very idea was atrocious. But to her dismay, he nodded.

"It's what you were put on this earth to be, Cassiopeia," he said, his tone reverting back to one of tenderness, but it didn't soften the blow at all. She looked at him in utter bewilderment, shocked that she was hearing his from the Hogwarts professor.

"Can I leave now?" she asked, nearly at a whisper, and tears started to fall freely from her eyes.

"There's one more thing," he said. "I know you still have your heart set on training to be an Auror. But in the spirit of this topic, I feel I must tell you I have been pursuing your enrollment into another type of advanced education."

"What?" she whispered, now glaring at Dumbledore, not believing what he was telling her further.

"It's out of the country, specializing in dueling and combat training. Nothing is set in stone, of course - "

"Of course not, considering I haven't agreed to anything of the sort!" she growled. "How _dare_ you plan my future, without even talking me to first!" She headed towards the staircase, not willing to hear anything else from the older wizard.

"Cassiopeia, I don't mean to upset you - "

"I don't want to hear it!" she said, and she descended the tower without another word. She was glad that Dumbledore didn't chase after her, because she was in such a foul mood now that she was at risk of trying to hex him right then, and really didn't need that on her record.

She headed back towards the dungeons, going straight to Snape's office, and this time, she was pleased to see that he indeed was there, seated at his desk.

"Where the fuck were you?" she demanded as soon as she saw him, and she got the reaction she wanted out of him, because he looked instantly antagonized, his black eyes flashing dangerously, his brows furrowing and making a telltale crease, letting her know that he was ready to fight.

"I beg your pardon?" he asked silkily, placing his hands on the desk and scooting the chair back in one smooth motion, going to stand. He was looking to be in a position of intimidation to match her aggression, and being seated would not be conducive to that. Cassie smirked, pleased that he was reacting the way that she predicted, wanting someone to spar with at the moment.

"I came here after my last class," she continued, "I fucking needed you, and you weren't here. So where the fuck were you?"

"I don't need to answer to you, little girl," he snarled back. "You have some newfound valor, coming in here, speaking to me this way!"

"Did you know?" she asked suddenly as she glowered at him, and she could tell that the question caught him off guard.

"What?"

"You heard me, Severus!" she snapped. "Answer the question! Did you fucking know?" He was silent for a split second, and his hesitation spurred on her anger, making her round the desk in a few hurried steps, coming to slam her hands into his chest, making him stumble back a step. "Answer me, damnit!"

"Cassie, what has gotten into you?" he demanded.

"Dumbledore, trying to send me off to some mercenary training!" she spat angrily. "Tell me you didn't know, that you weren't keeping it from me, Severus!"

"I didn't!"

"Liar!" she yelled, shoving him again, and he grabbed her wrists in his hands to stop her from doing it again, because her assault was making him lose it, and they couldn't risk both of them going ballistic in the tiny office.

"Cassie!" he shouted, just as he felt the ground underneath him start to rumble. Glass vials on the shelves around him started to clink and clatter, and he pushed her back into the wall, pressing his body into hers, hoping his proximity would start to calm her. "Get a hold of yourself! I didn't know! You need to calm down before you break everything in here!"

A flask fell from the shelf, shattering on the floor, then another, and the noise made Cassie realize that she didn't want this, that smashing her lover's possessions wasn't going to solve her internal anguish. So she looked up into his face, locking onto the coal black eyes that were searching for hers, and she felt him roughly pull her away from the wall and wrap his arms tightly around her. With his close embrace, she felt her breathing start to slow, and the rattling and groaning of the floor below them started to lessen.

"I'm sorry," she said, feeling her tears replace the outrage again. "I'm so sorry." Snape buried his face into her neck, trying to pull her to him tighter still.

"Stop apologizing," he said, and they didn't speak until the room around them was still again.

"Severus," Cassie whispered, "I'm so tired." He released his hold on her, taking her by the hand, and then led her to his quarters once again. Once they were settled on the loveseat next to one another, they approached the subject again, this time with much less intensity. Cassie started from the beginning, telling the Head of Slytherin of the entire conversation that she had with Dumbledore, and then allowed Snape a few moments of contemplation.

"I'll admit that he didn't approach it with much tact," Snape started slowly.

"But?" Cassie questioned, feeling aggravated and weary at the same time. "What, Sev, you agree with him? That it's something I should consider?"

"I don't know, Cassie," he replied. "I don't know enough about it to say either way."

She leaned forward, burying her face in her hands. "So that's what I am to you, too? Just some vessel for destruction?"

"I didn't say that. And he didn't, either, Cassie."

"Stop defending him!" She stood suddenly, wanting to get away from him, from anyone and everyone. He quickly followed her, going to grab her arm to stop her, but she wrenched her limb from his grasp.

"You want to be an Auror. This wouldn't be all that different - "

"Being a dark wizard catcher for the Ministry, and playing a part in a war a two _very_ different things, Severus!" she said, turning on him, but she saw that he was growing angry, as well.

"So what do you think will happen, Cassie, if you choose not to partake in this war? That you can ignore it? That you can just go about your business and pretend it doesn't exist? The dark wizards you'd be catching would be your father's followers anyway!" he said, and she stopped short, his words ringing true. But she wasn't in the mood to hear reason right then; rather, she was in the mood to be stubborn and difficult, and to just have someone tell her that she had the right to do as she pleased, rather than what everyone else was telling her what she needed to be doing.

"God damnit, Severus Snape!" she snapped, and she shoved him again, watching the bitterness flash on his pale features return.

"What now, you brazen, asinine girl!" he snarled at her, taking a few threatening steps towards her, his height towering over her as he approached.

"Why do you have to be so _fucking_ logical all the time?" she asked, exasperated. He was about to retort, when suddenly, she closed the gap between them. She reached up, pulling his face down to hers, and smashed her lips into his, letting it be known that for the time being, this conversation was closed and she had another agenda in mind.

As both parties had combative energy to expel, they spent the first few minutes of their necking trying to wrestle for control; Cassie started by biting and tugging at his lower lip, and he responded by tucking a hand into her hair, gripping a fistful of dark locks so he could pull her head back and start nipping at her collarbone. In unison, they slowly side-stepped their way back towards the loveseat. They landed on it with Cassie on her back, and Snape slowly started to crawl over her, Cassie reaching up to pull him down to her, not wanting to break their contact for longer than they had to. She continued to place hot kisses on his lips, across his jaw, down his neck, and then she flicked her wrist, making the buttons on the front his jacket burst open so she could push the garment off of him without pause. She got his shirt off his next, and he started to work on getting her clothing off at a frenzied speed, resorting yet again to ripping her shirt rather than taking the time to unbutton it.

He yanked her bra over her head just as she had pushed her hand down his pants, making him growl at her warm touch, and he lowered his head to her breast, not hesitating to take her nipple into his mouth and suck. They were pawing at one another like they hadn't seen each other in months, like they were starved for touch and had been isolated. In reality they just wanted each other, sharing a mutual need for the other's affections. She needed his closeness, his very presence a constant reassurance that everything would be alright. He would never admit it, but he was in constant awe that someone as passionate and adept as her, would be enthralled with someone as icy and melancholy as him. He was terrified that someday she would wake up and realize that he was all wrong for her, closed off and broken.

But right then, as they were wrapped up in one another and engrossed in each other's bodies, neither worried about whether or not they were right or wrong for each other. All they knew is that when they were together like this, that the rest of the world fell away, and nothing or no one else mattered. Being with Snape was one of the few things that made Cassie feel at peace, like she could just be her, and not all of these things that the rest of the world expected her to be. It healed her soul, made her feel like she might be able to deal with the rest of it.

Cassie placed her arm around Snape's neck, simultaneously trying to pull him closer to her as he kissed her again as well as pull herself on top of him, and she giggled as they tumbled onto the stone floor in a tangle of limbs and torn clothing. Regardless, she maneuvered her now naked lower half over his thighs, guiding his engorged cock inside of her, and started to grind her hips. He gripped her haunches roughly, holding onto her for the contact but allowing her to dictate the speed and depth at which they went. She started slow, relishing in feeling every inch of him moving against her tight walls, but then her movements started to become more brisk, erratic.

"Severus," she panted, and she leaned forward, wrapping her arms around his neck like a drowning woman, and he let go of her buttocks, tightly embracing her, and starting to thrust up into her quickly, over and over again, making her cry out until she started to quiver in her orgasm. He followed soon after, groaning her name as he spilled his seed inside of her, and they laid together, tangled together on the dungeon floor until they had the energy move again.

Cassie's mind was blissfully vacant for the first several minutes after their climaxes. But as she laid on top of Snape with her face nestled in the crook of his neck, she started to lightly trace up and down his arm with her finger, and for the first time in a while, she took notice to the faded Dark Mark on his left arm. It was something she had grown so accustomed to that it barely registered to her anymore. Right then, it made the worries about the inevitable conflicts to come rushing back to her, pulling her right out of her euphoria.

* * *

The next few days were a solace for Cassie, for she was able to spend as much of it as she wanted to in solitude in Snape's apartments. He spent some of the time out patrolling the corridors, as Quirrell still needed to be watched and Potter needed to be monitored, but then he would go right back to see her. Much of their time was spent in bed, or rolling around in front of the fire place, although Cassie knew she should probably devote some time to actually catch up on studying.

While Snape was gone following Quirrell, Cassie did decide to hang out on the grounds with Fred and George one afternoon, and had intended to maybe see Ron and Harry as well, but was surprised to learn that they were choosing to study a lot in the library for some reason. What they were doing was a bit of a mystery to Cassie, but at least she knew Harry was safe under Madam Pince's watchful stare and Quirrell wouldn't be able to do anything.

She knew that Snape went to Dumbledore at least once to discuss the conversation that had taken place at the Astronomy Tower, and he had bought it up to her one evening. She had tried to shut down the discussion immediately. This was her holiday break, after all. She was well aware that reality didn't stop just because of it, but for now, she wanted to pretend like it did. They argued about it, and she had shut him up by grabbing his jaw in her hand and kissing him deeply, while concurrently snaking her hand down his magically loosened pants; she had discovered that being brash while seducing him was rather lethal.

Soon, Christmas Eve was upon her, and Cassie was having to make plans to travel to Malfoy Manor. She briefly considered cancelling, but Snape would have none of it.

"You told Draco you would attend," he said curtly, and she scoffed. "Not going would only disappoint him."

"You have such a soft spot for him," she mused. "Why is that?"

"And you are unfairly callous with him," Snape countered.

"The little shit - "

"Is not his father!" he snapped at her, and she folded her arms over her chest. They had had this argument many times, and in lieu of the holiday, she didn't intend to have it yet again, knowing neither of them would budge.

"Why don't you come to dinner with me?" she asked, knowing the answer even as she said it, as she had asked him the same question multiple times already.

He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, an eccentricity that told her that he was growing annoyed but trying to contain it, and she stifled a giggle. "We've been over this, Cassie. I would be more than willing to, but as I've told you, I don't feel comfortable leaving Potter here with Quirrell."

"Lucius will be disappointed."

"Yes, as he's already informed me of, as well. So glad I can dissatisfy both of you in one go," he muttered. Cassie sighed, walking up behind him and wrapping her arms around his torso.

"You don't dissatisfy me," she said, and this time she openly let her giggles out. He turned around, reaching around her to land a sharp pinch on her behind, making her laugh even harder.

Even with the mass hysteria around her seemingly quieted, no one wanted to risk Cassie going into Hogsmeade yet, so the fireplace in Snape's office was granted access to Malfoy Manor by the Ministry of Magic. Cassie stood in front of it, dreading going but ready to get her visit over with, and gave Snape a kiss.

"Wish me luck," she said, and he raised an eyebrow at her.

"You'll be fine," he said, and she pretended that it was a warm sentiment that he left her with before she threw her Floo powder into the fireplace, stepped in, and dully but clearly stated her destination.

She arrived in the manor's entry hall, and as she stepped out, she was fine with the fact that it was currently deserted. She considered going straight to her room and staying there until she was summoned for dinner, until she heard approaching footsteps.

"Cousin!" came the enthused voice of Draco as he stepped into the room. He was adorned in a dark green bathrobe, his normally slicked back platinum hair strewn about, likely having been lounging about the place as he normally did unless they had visitors. "You're late!"

Cassie rolled her eyes. "Dinner is at seven tonight, and it's noon. How am I late?"

Ignoring her, Draco continued on. "Well, come on then, Mother let me open some of my gifts early, let's go see them!" With nothing better to do with her time, Cassie followed him into one of the estate's many recreational rooms, and he showed her his new miniature Quidditch set, where you could set up little players and command them to do certain plays or recreate past matches. He showed her some new books, which he seemed rather disinterested in, and she watched in fake interest as he went through pack after pack of Chocolate Frogs, crumpling and throwing away any cards that he already had or didn't care for. After an hour or so of that, they ended up playing several rounds of Exploding Snap. Only when he grew hungry enough to leave the room and wander into the kitchen for a snack, did Cassie follow him and end up running into Narcissa.

"Aunt Cissy," she said, giving her a slight nod.

"Hello, Cassie," she said, looking her niece up and down. "So kind of you to join us for the holiday. Draco tells me he practically had to beg you."

Cassie looked away from her aunt and around the room as house elves busily prepared the evening's meal, which looked like it would be roast, potatoes and various vegetables and desserts. Draco was hovering around Dobby, pestering him for something to eat.

"Draco, for God's sake, make yourself a sandwich," Cassie snapped, and Draco scrunched up his nose at her.

"Don't talk to him that way!" Narcissa scolded her, but Cassie wasn't going to put up with it.

"Someone ought to teach him some self sufficiency," Cassie said lowly, and she started grabbing ingredients to put one together herself.

"What do we have servants for?" Narcissa said shrewdly. Cassie glared at her as she slapped the haphazardly made snack on a plate and handed it to her cousin, ushering him away from the swamped looking house elves.

"If I never have to step foot in this house again, it will be too soon," Cassie replied. She turned to leave the room, and almost ran right into Lucius, who was now standing in the doorway, looking as smug as ever.

"Now, now," he said, eyeing her coldly. "What's this, I hear? You've been home less than two hours, and already my girls are fighting?"

"Excuse me," Cassie said, and her uncle moved out of her way, but followed her as she made her way to the staircase that led to the second floor.

"Such a cold greeting," he drawled. "You don't seem grateful at all that we invited you here for the holiday, when no one else would."

Cassie barked out a laugh. "You act as though you did me a favor, Uncle Lucius, when in fact, the only reason I came is because I know your wonderful father will be here and I didn't want Draco to have to deal with him alone!"

"You're a disrespectful little thing, considering what I _did_ for you at the Ministry," he said, and Cassie turned on her heel to face him.

" _Don't!_ " she said, walking towards him, feeling her blood begin to boil. "I don't know what your play is, Uncle, but I don't want any part of your little game. I'll come to dinner, and then I'm gone."

Lucius looked like he was about to say something, but didn't, and she could see that he was clenching his jaw to refrain himself. Cassie smirked at him.

"Go ahead, Uncle. I know you want to say something about me visiting my blood traitor aunt, or my mudblood uncle. Please, do it. See how it ends for you," she said, and then he stopped following her. She went into her room then, and was left alone for the next few hours, left to lay on her bed and reminisce about how much she hated this place. For every good memory she had of it, she had horrible memories to outweigh it by the dozens.

Draco came in much later, this time in neatly pressed dress robes, his hair neatly slicked back, and she knew it would be almost time for dinner. She had put on her own set of silvery dress robes that had been in her wardrobe for occasions such as these, knowing that if she didn't that it would just cause another argument.

"You ready?" she asked, noticing that he looked a bit nervous, and he nodded. For as much as the younger Slytherin was a slick little bastard, she had to remind herself that he was still an insecure child inside.

They made their way downstairs and into the formal dining room, and Cassie noted right away that Abraxas was seated at the head of the table at Lucius' normal spot. Lucius and Narcissa were sipping some red wine, looking as elegant and poised as ever in their finest dress robes. Had anyone looked in on the little family, they'd think they were about to entertain the Minister himself, rather than just having Christmas Eve dinner with each other.

"Hello, Grandson," Abraxas said, and Draco bowed his head.

"Good evening, Grandfather," he replied rather politely as he took his seat.

"Miss Black," Abraxas then said to Cassie, but his delivery was pompous, and he looked her up and down, much like the way his daughter-in-law had done to her earlier, as if he were examining a head of cattle up for auction.

"Grandfather Malfoy," Cassie said, imitating the bow that Draco had given him. She tried not to show that she was gritting her teeth the entire time.

"Don't we make a handsome gathering," Abraxas said as the house elves entered through the servant's doors, starting to place the first course in front of them. "And tell me, Draco, how is your first year at the wizarding school going?"

"Rather well, Grandfather," Draco answered. "I'm making rather good marks."

"And sorted into Slytherin. Not that anyone is surprised," the elder Malfoy said, and Lucius raised his glass at the statement.

"Yes, Slytherin's Head of House is rather fond of him," Narcissa said warmly. "He's a friend of the family, and speaks rather highly of Draco, says that he does well in all of his classes."

"Isn't the current Head of House that half-blood?" Abraxas asked, taking a sip of wine. "I'd be a bit uncertain of what one of those says, wouldn't I?"

Draco looked crestfallen, and Cassie instantly wanted to stab her fork into the elderly wizard's hand, but refrained from doing so. "Professor Snape is a brilliant wizard and the best Potions Master that Hogwarts has ever seen, so I'd believe every word he says, Grandfather Malfoy," Cassie said, and she gave Draco a wink.

"Nonsense, Black," Abraxas countered, waving his hand at her, "Horace Slughorn is the best Potions Master Hogwarts has had, and the title will remain with him until a pureblood witch or wizard can compete for the title."

"Yes, I agree," Lucius said, and Cassie shot him a glare.

"Uncle Lucius," Cassie said, folding her hands neatly in front of her, pretending to look rather interested as she addressed him. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but did you, or did you not, insist that Professor Snape join us for dinner tonight, but he declined? So do you find him worthy of your company or not?"

Lucius returned her glare, and then Abraxas started to look between the two.

"He declined knowing that _you_ would be here, with what wonderful company you are, my precious niece," he sneered.

"Now, now," Abraxas said. "No need for abrasiveness at this table. It is Christmas Eve, after all."

"No, of course not," Narcissa said, and she kicked Cassie's shin under the table.

"My apologies," Cassie said.

"Now, I hear that the Potter boy is in Draco's year," Abraxas said, and Cassie felt a flush rise to her chest. There was no way that this dinner was going to remain peaceful. She might as well just leave now. "How are things going with him? Do you get along with him?"

"He's a dunce, and full of himself," Draco said a little too quickly, taking a large bite of his food. "I hate him!"

"But he's the Seeker for the Gryffindor Quidditch team, I hear," Abraxas said. "So there must be some reason for his vanity, eh?" Draco looked like he was about to choke on his food.

"Yes, I've told Draco to at least try to get along with the boy, but he's failed miserably," Lucius said, sounding sorely disappointed. "Apparently he's incapable of controlling himself."

"It's incredibly rare for first years to make the Quidditch teams," Cassie said, trying to take the pressure off of her younger cousin, as that was the reason why she was there. "But maybe next year he could try out - "

"Speaking of _talented_ Quidditch players," Abraxas said, turning his gaze from Draco's miserable face to Cassie's, "Are you still seeing the Weasley boy, tainting yourself with the blood traitor?"

"No," Cassie said, seething now, "I"m not."

"I see," the Malfoy grandfather said. "So who ended it?"

"He did," Narcissa piped up rather quickly. Well, at least the attention was off Draco.

"So, Cassiopeia, daughter of the Dark Lord and the Noble House of Black," Abraxas started, and Cassie raised her eyebrows at him, clearing her throat, readying herself for what was about to come at her. She felt equal parts amused and appalled at this point, although that was pretty much expected when Abraxas came to visit. "With all of that grandeur flowing through your veins, you can't even manage to keep a dirty Weasley interested in you? Where exactly has my son gone wrong with raising you?"

"Father," Lucius started, looking defeated, but wanting desperately to defend himself, "I assure you, we have tried every means necessary to ensure that she has aligned her viewpoints with ours - "

"Don't bother!" Cassie snapped, cutting her uncle off, who was sounding rather demure in his attempts to convince his father that he was indeed, not pathetic. "I'll just have to remind your dear father, Uncle, that I am, in fact, a _half-blood_ , and maybe that's why I've been unable to follow the rules this entire time!"

Both Abraxas and Narcissa gasped as though she had spoken some sort of atrocious obscenities. Draco, who had been about to place a bit of roast in this mouth, had his mouth hanging open, and was staring as the scene in front of him unfolded, and Lucius had accidentally knocked over his wine glass, the red liquid now slowly oozing its away across the table towards the rest of its occupants.

"Blasphemy!" Abraxas yelled, pushing his chair back and standing up, pointing his arthritic finger at her as he shook from head to toe. "How _dare_ you speak such words against the Dark Lord! You should be branded just for uttering such absurdity!"

"Oh, should I?" Cassie said, casually taking a bite of her food. "Then why don't you come over here and try?"

Cassie was ready for the dinner to be over, but she had given Draco her word that she would stay for its entirety. Luckily for her, Abraxas pretty much wanted to go home quickly after that. Once he was out the door and on his way, everyone's true feelings came out.

"You're an ungrateful brat!" Narcissa declared. "Speaking to Lucius' father that way, in _our_ home!"

Cassie started to laugh darkly. "You're priorities are so ass backwards, it's insane! Don't worry, I'll be out of your hair soon. I think I'll go to Aunt Andromeda's a bit early."

"If she'll have you!" Narcissa snarled.

"Excuse me? What is that supposed to mean? Did you threaten her?" Cassie asked shrilly, and then her aunt looked a bit taken aback.

"No!" Lucius said right away. "But it seems like a pattern, doesn't it, my dear Cass? That you threw our affections for you away, instead giving your loyalty to the Weasleys, and now here you are with us again because they don't _want_ you!"

"You've got it all wrong," Cassie said, gritting her teeth. "They're in Romania, visiting Charlie, or I'd be at the Burrow - "

"Visiting the son that rejected you!" Narcissa said haughtily.

"Yeah, sometimes teenagers break up!" Cassie said, exasperated. "Sorry that I didn't feel like going out of the country to see my ex-boyfriend! God, you two are bat-shit crazy! What was the point of inviting me here, exactly?"

"Because we're family," Lucius said, raising his chin, his arrogant face making her want to hit him. "And even though we had a fight, it doesn't just make that go away."

"No, there's something more than that," Cassie said, looking between her aunt and uncle. "There's always something with you two, isn't there?" She wished Draco hadn't been in the room to hear all of this, that he had gone somewhere else to play with his miniature Quidditch set or God forbid, pester the house elves. Anything but witness the animosity between she and his parents once again. "Did you want to make sure I wasn't going to turn you in? Is that it?"

Lucius suddenly looked at Draco, obviously thinking the same thing then, and ordered his son out of the room. When he left, he took a few steps towards her, looking as angry as ever. "Turn me in for _what?_ "

"Don't play stupid, Uncle!" Cassie said, rolling her eyes. "For threatening Andromeda, for offering to fund me to be the next Dark Lord - "

"Don't you _ever_ speak of that in this house again!" Narcissa said suddenly. "The audacity, to accuse us of those things, when all we did was want you home for Christmas!" To Cassie's horror, her aunt actually started to shed a few tears, and she couldn't tell if they were sincere or not.

"Believe it or not," Lucius said quietly then, placing an arm around Narcissa's shoulders, "We actually care about you, my niece."

Cassie was silent for a few moments, her emotions working against her as her aunt continued to cry, and her uncle looking as though he was attempting to comfort her. She almost apologized then, wanting to make some sort of amends, because it was Christmas, after all.

She said her goodbyes to Draco, and then she made her way off the grounds, intending to apparate to the Tonks' for the remainder of Christmas. She was rather looking forward to spending time in a household where she could be herself and not have to worry about talks of pureblood superiority. But she couldn't shake the feeling that she had somehow failed a test that she didn't know she had been taking.


	17. Christmas

Arriving in front of Andromeda and Ted's house with a loud pop, Cassie sighed in relief as soon as the familiar house came into her view. The Tonks residence was the complete antithesis to Malfoy Manor, radiating coziness and a welcoming atmosphere. The only regret she felt as she walked up the drive and to the front door was that she had been robbed of the chance to spend more time there growing up.

She was greeted with warm hugs and large smiles from her aunt and uncle as soon as the door opened, and she apologized for arriving earlier than they had planned in their letters.

"Nonsense," Andromeda said immediately, "You're always welcome here, Cassie. I hope you know that now." The brunette witch looked positively radiant in just a set of flannel pajamas, bathrobe, and slippers. Cassie realized then that she was still in her silver dress robes, and couldn't wait to change into something a bit more informal.

"I know, Aunt Dromeda," Cassia replied with a smile. "I just hate to impose."

"You'll be in Dora's room," Ted said, ushering Cassie further into the house. There was a large, heavily decorated tree near the lit fireplace and it looked like they had been sipping something in mugs in the squashy looking chairs when Cassie had come calling. With all of the elaborate ornaments and dim lighting in the house, it all almost seemed surreal, like she had stepped inside of a holiday painting. The atmosphere was similar to the Weasleys around Christmas time, and Cassie found herself missing being in the large family's home this year, even though she was thrilled to spending the holiday where she was.

"Is she going to have time off tomorrow after all?" Cassie asked as she stepped inside of her cousin's bedroom with her bag, pulling out a long purple nightshirt to change into.

"Yes, it seems Mad-Eye is letting her have most of the day to spend here," Ted said with a smile. "Why don't you get settled, and then join us out in the living room?" He left her alone to get settled, and Cassie changed into her pajamas, eager to get out of the elegant clothing that reminded her of the disastrous dinner she had just come from. As she started to take her raven hair out of its up-do, she started to look around her cousin's room a bit, and her eyes landed on a photo of her, Tonks, and Charlie that was framed and perched on the dresser. The three of them were standing arm in arm in front the Three Broomsticks, all of them smiling broadly, looking quite pleased to be in each other's company. They had taken the picture right after Tonks and Charlie's graduation from Hogwarts.

Now as she stood looking at it, Cassie recalled that Charlie had already broken up with her at the point that they had posed for the picture. It made her realize that she had been rather complacent when the relationship had ended, that she had barely taken the time to cry more than a handful of times when her boyfriend of two and a half years had given her the boot. She couldn't imagine reacting that way now, if Snape told her that it was over, that he no longer wanted her. Even imaging the scenario to compare the two relationships sent a sharp pain through her heart, and she forced herself to stop thinking about it immediately.

But now she missed him, wondered what he was doing on this Christmas Eve. He was probably patrolling the corridors, making sure Potter was safe, as usual. She suddenly found herself wishing it was the next night so she could go back to Hogwarts to see him, and she internally scolded herself, knowing she should be grateful for the this night to spend with her aunt and uncle.

She headed out to where Andromeda and Ted sat by their fireplace, ready to spend some much needed quality time with them. Ted immediately handed her a mug of tea and guided her to a recliner, and the three of them had a leisurely, natural conversation. Cassie caught them up on what she was learning in her classes, and they filled her in on some of Tonks' adventures in her training, although the more dangerous endeavors Andromeda didn't seem to keen to relive on that peaceful night.

There was no talk of the Ministry, or upcoming wars or prophecies, or unicorn blood or someone wanting to kill Potter; not once did Cassie think of what she had seen that night in the mirror, or the conversation she had with Firenze in the forest. There was no unpleasant tension about what pureblood was doing what and who was a blood traitor and what mudblood to stay away from. It was a welcome change of pace for Cassie, an ambience that she desperately needed. They chatted well into the night, and finally when all three of them started to yawn mid-sentence, did Andromeda announce that they should probably think about heading to bed.

"Oh, before I forget, Cassie," the older witch said as Cassie slowly padded towards Tonks' bedroom, rubbing her eyes. She went into the kitchen for a moment, then came back to Cassie, holding a package wrapped in brown paper. "It's the text you wanted." Cassie took it from her and unwrapped it, revealing a tattered, antique book titled _Şəfalı Iksirlərin Hamısı_ , its cover looking like it had once been a bright vermilion but now faded and almost a shade of rust, and as she gingerly picked it up and opened it to its first page, she saw that the pages had yellowed.

"Thank you, Aunt Dromeda," Cassie said, going to place the obviously frail looking potions book on Tonks' desk, not wanting to cause it further damage, as she intended to wrap it up nicely and give it to its intended recipient tomorrow night when she saw him. "I would have gotten it myself in Diagon Alley, but I haven't really been back in public since...that day."

"You don't have to explain," Andromeda said quietly. "I wouldn't be ready to yet, either."

Cassie nodded, sitting on the bed. "Did the money I send you cover it?"

"Oh, yes," her aunt said. "It just took a bit of searching, is all. Flourish and Blotts didn't have a copy and didn't know of a way to obtain one, so I got Borgin and Burkes to track it down for me - "

"Dromeda, you didn't have to do that!" Cassie said, surprised that her aunt went to that much trouble.

"Oh, it's nothing," her aunt replied with a sly smile. "Do you really think that the shopkeepers in Knockturn Alley would mess with me? My sisters might not associate with me, but the rest of the world remembers that I'm a Black, after all."

"Yes, I suppose."

"You don't need to protect us," Andromeda said then, going to sit next to Cassie on the bed, placing a reassuring hand on her niece's shoulder. "I know you must feel that way, after you learned what the Malfoys were doing - "

"I told them, if they ever say anything like that to you two again, I'd - " Cassie was cut off when her aunt placed her hand over her mouth to shush her.

"Please, not so loud, I don't want Ted to hear," Andromeda explained quietly, and removed her hand. "I didn't mean to upset you, Cassie, and I really didn't want to bring anything close to the subject up tonight. So the only thing I want to say is that we're fine, and we'll be fine. Ted and I are so happy to have you here with us, and Dora will be thrilled to see you tomorrow."

Cassie nodded, wanting to say so much more, but conceded to her aunt's wishes to keep the peace. "I'm happy to be here, too."

She went to bed then, hoping to have a restful night's sleep. Having had a busy day, she drifted off quickly, and started to dream of a certain Potions Master, her subconscious reliving a particularly sultry afternoon they had spent in his quarters only a few days ago, barely leaving the bed except to nourish and relieve themselves. But then her images started to slowly shift, and then she was no longer in bed with Snape, but instead standing in the Dark Forest next to figures in black robes, hoods pulled over their heads and silver masks covering their faces; she turned to confront one of them, to ask what they thought they were doing there, when she heard her mother's voice call her name.

Cassie turned around to follow the voice, now seeing Bellatrix standing there with Nymphadora in her clutches, a silver dagger digging into her cousin's exposed throat. Cassie tried to call out, to plead with her mother to let Tonks go, and when she took a step forward, the blade was plunged into flesh, red blood starting to spurt in every direction and paint the forest around them.

Christmas morning started with Cassie screaming in her sleep. She didn't realize she was doing it until she was shaken awake by her aunt, and it took her several seconds to focus on the concerned faces of Ted and Andromeda above her.

"Cassie!" Andromeda was saying concernedly, smoothing her niece's hair away from her pale, sweaty face. "Cassie, you're alright, you're in Dora's room, you're safe!"

"Oh," Cassie said, now feeling quite foolish as she realized she had been dreaming. She wished the bloody images of her dream would start to fade as reality started to take over her consciousness as it sometimes did, but no luck so far. She swallowed hard, trying to push the thought of her cousin's dead body out of her mind as she simultaneously attempted to appear calm as to not further alarm her aunt and uncle. "I'm fine, it was just a nightmare."

"Must have been a bad one," Ted muttered. "Tried to pull you out of it for a minute or so."

"I'm sorry," Cassie said, sniffling. "I have them sometimes, I just forgot to meditate before I went to sleep is all."

She saw Ted and Andromeda exchange worried glances, but they didn't push the issue further. "Well, why don't you take a few minutes, and then come help us get breakfast on?" Ted suggested, and left Cassie alone. She spent a few minutes sitting on the bed to gather herself, clear her mind.

This was going to be a good Christmas. She was going to make sure of it.

She pulled on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt from her overnight bag, and then made her way out to the kitchen. Andromeda was starting to make sausages and eggs on the stove while Ted put on some coffee. Cassie was about to ask what she could help with, when a loud bang towards the front of the house startled her, and she heard a voice call, "Oi, I've arrived home just in time for presents! Owls just came by!"

Cassie completely forgot about helping her aunt and uncle make food and sprinted towards the source of the noise, and she launched herself towards Tonks, who had just burst through the front door. Cassie also totally disregarded the fact that Tonks was holding an armful of packages, and they were all knocked to the ground as the two young witches embraced each other with so much enthusiasm that they nearly toppled over.

"Happy Christmas, Cass!" Tonks exclaimed, and Cassie squeezed her cousin so hard that she thought she might cut off her air supply, but she didn't care at the moment.

"Happy Christmas, Dora!" Cassie replied, and then she peeled herself from the hug, because she knew that her aunt and uncle would be just as eager to embrace their daughter. Cassie watched the three of them exchanged enthusiastic hugs and kisses, and then she headed back to the kitchen to make sure their forgotten breakfast wasn't burning on the stove as they started to chatter away happily in greeting.

"Well, you're a bit of a popular one, aren't you?" Tonks said as she entered the kitchen a few minutes later. "Looks like you got a few packages out there."

"I don't know who from," Cassie mused, putting the sausages onto a plate.

"I don't know for sure, but one's handwriting looks like a certain someone from Romania," Tonks said with a wink, and Cassie looked at her in surprise.

"Oh," she replied. "Well, that's rotten, because I didn't send him anything!"

Tonks started laughing, her features glowing from her currently spiky, bright green hair. "Serves him right. He was kicking around the idea of sending you more letters recently, you know, but when I caught wind of it, I sent him a rather nasty one, told him to leave you be - "

"Wait a second," Cassie said, and Andromeda and Ted entered the room, helping her plate up the rest of the food so they could eat. "How often do you talk to Charlie?"

"Oh, I don't get enough time to talk to him much," Tonks said, biting into a sausage. "I heard it through Arthur at the office, of course."

"Right."

"But anyway, apparently Charlie's been telling his mum and dad how much he misses you, that he was thinking about trying to strike up a long distance relationship with you, and of course Molly was all for it because she loves you and wants you to have her grandbabies," Tonks continued. Cassie snorted.

"I have enough on my plate, thank you very much," Cassie said, sitting down and pouring herself some coffee.

"That's what I said!" Tonks declared. "And once you graduate and start your Auror training, you're going to be so busy like me, you're not going to have much time to spare for that anyway." Cassie nodded, and thoughts of Auror training and other conversations with Dumbledore started to spring forth in her mind, and she quickly tried to force them away.

"Well, I can't imagine Charlie can afford a distraction like that, anyway," Ted mused. "Needs to stay focused on the fire breathing dragons, right?"

"Right," Andromeda agreed.

The rest of their breakfast was rather pleasant, and then they went to sit around the large, beautifully decorated Christmas tree to exchange and open gifts. Cassie received a new set of quills from Andromeda and Ted, and Tonks bestowed upon her a set of standard antidotes in a handsome leather traveling case. "Since you're so bloody wretched at Potions, thought I'd give you a set that that the Aurors carry with them in case they get poisoned," Tonks explained with a wide grin.

Next, she opened one of the packages that the owls had brought that morning, and Cassie had received the standard Weasley sweater made by Molly, this year's version a dark green with a silver 'C' on the front. Cassie had come to cherish these annual sweaters, and she immediately pulled it on over her t-shirt, relishing the warm fabric. Tonks had also received one this year, hers yellow with a black 'T', and she was delighted that the mother Weasley had remembered the 'correct' initial this year.

Cassie moved onto her remaining package, and indeed, it looked like the handwriting on it belonged to Charlie. When she opened it, she was surprised to see that there was a gleaming iridescent scale inside, larger than her hand in size. There was a small hole in the apex, with a length of black cord through it. There was a note at the bottom of the brown paper.

_'Green Pea,_

_This is from the young female Antipodean Opaleye I've been working with. I've nicknamed her Ella, because she's stubborn and hot-headed, just like you. Hope all is well. I find myself thinking of you often.  
_

_Love,_

_Charlie'_

Cassie jumped when she heard Tonks snort in her ear, as she had been reading the note over her shoulder. "'Green Pea'. That nickname always made me want to puke."

"Did he send you one?" Cassie asked, closing the dragon scale along with the note back up in the brown paper.

"Yeah," she said, and she opened her similarly wrapped package, revealing a silvery-blue scaled on the same black cord. "He says its from a Swedish Short-Snout. No sentiments of love or pet vegetable nicknames, though."

"Oh, give him a break," Cassie said, rolling her eyes. "Maybe he's just lonely over there, isn't thinking straight."

" _He's_ lonely? Try traipsing about the country with Mad-Eye day in and day out, then he can complain about being lonely! The man is brilliant, don't get me wrong, but he's not much for company! I'd bet those dragons make for better conversation some days." Tonks said, and she launched into story after story of her training days, and her successes and near misses of catching criminals of the wizarding community. There were a few times that Cassie tried to throw her cousin a warning look to get her to shut up, because her parents looked rather worried hearing some of the dangerous things she had been up to. But overall, Andromeda and Ted seemed rather proud of their daughter and her endeavors.

They got to work on their Christmas mid-day dinner, and Cassie was never so grateful for the family's lack of house elves, for they shared so many stories and laughs while preparing the turkey and trimmings, mainly without the use of magic. They ate a little too much, and spent some time outside to enjoy the slowly falling snowflakes and watch a few of the neighbor children have a rather enthusiastic snowball fight while they sipped hot chocolate. After wandering back inside the house, Tonks and Cassie went to the bedroom while Andromeda and Ted went into the kitchen to put on some tea.

"So weird to be back here," Tonks said quietly as she picked up her old knickknacks and studied them, as if she hadn't seen them in ages. "It's like this is all from a lifetime ago." She came across the old Azerbaijani potions book that Cassie had Andromeda pick up, and scrunched up her nose. "What's this?"

"It's an old potions book. Collector's piece, really," Cassie replied.

"For Snape?" Cassie nodded. She had always gotten the Potions professor Christmas gifts, so the presence of the book wouldn't exactly arouse suspicion about their now not-so-platonic relationship. "Is he still the same old greasy git?"

Cassie snorted in laughter, amused that Tonks' blunt temperament was unchanged even with her strenuous Auror training. "Yes, I suppose."

"Never understood your friendship with the guy," Tonks said, now rummaging through her old jewelry box and putting on a large, dangling pair of gold earrings, and her hair suddenly started to grown drastically in length and change from green to a deep scarlet.

"Well, I spend more time with him now more than ever, with you and Charlie gone," Cassie admitted, laying back on the bed.

"Bet you can't wait to get out of there, huh?" Tonks replied, looking in the little mirror perched on her dresser, examining her nose. The shape started change, suddenly looking much more short and flat. Cassie, who had felt rather content and relaxed for the majority of the day until right then, felt her stomach twist as the familiar pang of anxiety gripped her. Her cousin's well intended words had her now thinking of how in a few short months, she'd be leaving the familiar routine of Hogwarts, and with it, the ability to see Snape basically whenever she wanted to.

"Oh, I don't know," Cassie replied softly, but Tonks had started another anecdote and didn't hear her. Cassie did her best to shake the negative thoughts from her mind and continue enjoying her time with the little family, as she had to be heading back to the castle in a few short hours.

Nighttime was upon them soon. Tonks had to be heading back to the Ministry to meet back up with Moody, and Cassie had a scheduled time to use the living room fireplace to get back to Snape's office, as to once again limit time in public. After emotional goodbyes all around, the foursome parted ways, and Cassie was once again using the Floo Network, this time with a few more packages in hand and proudly wearing her homemade Weasley sweater.

Snape wasn't seated at his desk, so Cassie went to his quarters. The fireplace was lit, and she could see his hunched over silhouette in one of the chairs, as if he were reading. She went to the dining area to set her overnight bag and packages down, and he stood to greet her, the text he had been looking at still in his hands.

"Happy Christmas, Severus," she said, holding the gift she had gotten for him, and he bent down to her to give her a kiss.

"Hello, Cassie," he murmured. His breath smelled slightly of whiskey, and he seemed relaxed, as if he had actually gotten the chance to unwind, spend some time to himself. She was about to ask him if Quirrell was out of the castle, for that was the only reason she could think of for him to be acting this carefree as of late, but she couldn't bring herself to even bring it up. Even though she had spent the whole day with people she loved and speaking of things completely unrelated, she found herself drained even thinking of the topic, so she refrained from speaking of it for the time being.

"Did you have a good day?" she asked.

"It was fine. Better, now that you're here," he replied smoothly, and he kissed her again, this time with more fervor, sending shivers throughout her entire body.

"Mmm, you're distracting," Cassie said after she pulled away, and she handed him his gift, going to pour herself her own drink. The Head of Slytherin sat back down in his chair, carefully opening the wrapping, as if he was anticipating the antiquity of the book inside. Perhaps he was, as rare potions and spellbooks were something that Cassie liked to find for him.

Once he had the paper off, he ran a graceful hand over the cover, then carefully opened it, started to gently page through it. "How did you get it?" he asked.

"I wanted to find it myself, but I didn't want to risk going out in public just yet," Cassie explained, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I had Aunt Dromeda get it."

"Won't she be suspicious?"

"No," Cassie reassured him, "they know I've gotten books for you other years." He didn't say anything, and Cassie watched his face carefully as he continued to examine the book. He didn't look pleased, or all that interested, and in fact seemed a little bit uneasy. It made Cassie start to feel a bit flustered, as this was the first gift exchange between the two of them since they had become romantically involved, and she had wanted desperately to get it right. "Do you have this one already, Severus?"

He looked up at her suddenly, as if she had pulled him out of a thought. "No."

"So you don't like it."

"What? No, it's not that."

Cassie went over to his chair then, and dropped down to her knees in front of it, her eyes now level with his. She wanted to get to the bottom of what was going on, but also she just wanted to be close to him, because she had been away for almost two days and just wanted to be near him. "So what is it?"

He looked at her then, his black eyes looking so intently at her that all she wanted to do was kiss him, but suddenly he sighed and set the book on his lap, then reached into his pocket. He withdrew a small, maroon box and held it in front of him. "This is for you," he said lowly.

She wanted to giggle in relief. Now she knew he had been acting strangely because he had been nervous about the gift he had gotten her. But she resisted, knowing that laughing in this moment when he was feeling so vulnerable would only make him agitated, and she gingerly took the box from him with a straight face. When she flipped the top open, it revealed a black onyx necklace on a silver chain, the oval-shaped pendent surrounded by small moonstones.

"Severus, it's beautiful!" she exclaimed, and she started to take the jewelry out of its case, intending to put it on right away.

"If it's not your aesthetic, you don't have to wear it," he muttered.

"Nonsense," she said, and she handed it to him, lifting up her hair and turning around so he could help her. "I love it." Once he had it clasped, she turned back around to kiss him again. "It's a very thoughtful gift, Sev."

"As is yours," he replied, standing only long enough to find a safe place for his new text on one of his many bookshelves. It wasn't long before they were locked in a sensual, loving kiss, and hands were roaming over each other's bodies, and soon, the necklace was the only thing that Cassie was wearing as she laid down in front of the crackling fireplace on the rug. Her long black locks strewn underneath her, she felt her cheeks redden as Snape slowly crawled over her, taking his sweet time, letting his eyes roam over every inch of her naked body.

Cassie was feeling rather lascivious, having been away from him for so long and feeling so bonded to him at the moment, but he appeared to want to take things slow, to savor things this time around. She was hungrily kissing his neck and tightly wrapping her legs around his hips to pull him to her, but he was making unhurried, deliberate touches all over her skin. She moaned as he slowly began to suck on her earlobe, and she nearly came undone when his breathy voice reached her senses.

"Now, now," he purred, her earlobe still between his teeth as he spoke, "this isn't a race."

She wanted nothing more then to grab him, to take control and to ride him into oblivion, but she was also rather enjoying the attention he was giving her, so she kept her hands on his torso and his backside instead, letting him decide where and when he wanted to give her contact. His mouth went from her ear, to her jaw, to her collarbone, and soon her chest was heaving from anticipation. When he finally took one of her nipples into his warm mouth, she started to tremble, and she was sure she was going to lose it right then and there.

"Severus," she said breathlessly, "please - "

She stopped talking when his hand started to slowly, painstakingly travel from her rib cage, down her stomach, and she desperately wanted it to come to rest between her legs. Instead, it bypassed that desired area and came to rest on her inner thigh and slowly rub there. She responded by opening her legs wide, urging him to touch her in her most sensitive place, to stop teasing her.

"You're so wet, I can feel it dripping down your thighs," he uttered lowly, moving his mouth to her other breast.

"You're mocking me," she panted, and she moved her hand between her legs, going to stimulate her clit, because she simply couldn't take it anymore, but he grabbed her wrist.

"I would never be that cruel," he said in reply, gently moving her hand to her side, and she tried to pull it away from him. In response, his head started to move lower between her breasts, down her stomach, coming to rest between her legs, and just as she was about to argue with him, she felt his tongue on her aching core, making her moan so loud that he chuckled at her enthusiasm. He used his nose expertly to press into her sensitive nub as he lapped at her, his hands on her thighs to open her legs up even more. Just when she was about to burst at the seams, he shifted pressure, his tongue now moving to her clit, and he slowly inserted two long fingers into her, using them to pump in and out of her tight opening. He could tell that she wanted them at a vigorous pace, but he kept his movements slow, gradual. He admired her ragged breaths and the sweat accumulating on her flushed skin, knowing that he was building something inside of her so overwhelming that her legs would be shaking for hours after.

When she did reach her climax, she was writhing so hard that she almost seemed to seize beneath him. He allowed her a few minutes of recovery, planting warm, tender kisses on her flushed skin, and then he inched up her body again, pressing his now incredibly wanting shaft at her entrance and entering her at the same relaxed pace in which he had just pleasured her. He wanted to enjoy every moment of this, to make it last all night if he could. Cassie seemed to cling to him for dear life as he pumped in and out of her, but soon he found that his own breathing was turning ragged, that he was losing self control as her warm pussy clenched around him from all sides.

She was absolutely delectable. In this moment, he was sure that he'd never be able to get enough of her, not in ten lifetimes. Not wanting to cum just yet, he pulled himself out of her, making her groan in displeasure at the sudden loss of contact, and he flipped her onto her side, settling himself behind her. Grasping her leg and holding it up, he entered her again from behind, and continued at the same pace.

Eventually, when he started to feel her walls start to shudder around him, he allowed himself his own release, and when they both came down from their peaks, he pulled her close, as they were both still lying on their sides in front of the fireplace. He nuzzled his face into her neck and hair, planting kisses on her skin.

When he reached his arm around her to pull her closer, he absentmindedly started to fondle the pendent that had fallen between her breasts. The necklace was an instant reminder of their bond, of their unsaid commitment to one another, and he smiled into her neck, something he rarely showed when the two of them were awake together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovely readers,  
> This is something that I debated even bringing up, as I firmly believe that fanfiction is a place to escape the stresses of the real world. That being said, I find that it would be a disservice not to share with you with everything going on at the moment, that I may not be able to update as frequently as I would like to in the near future.   
> I am a nurse, I work in a hospital. As my schedule is now, I work twelve hours shifts, which grants me regular stretches off and gives me time to dedicate to writing. However, it is a real possibility that I will be working many, many more hours coming up as my facility becomes short staffed, and that will understandably cut into my ability to invest time into this. I still will continue as I am able, just know that updates may slow down for now.  
> As always, thanks for reading. <3


	18. Birthdays, Bracelets, and Letters

The next morning, Cassie woke feeling rather peaceful and content, not recalling any barbaric nightmares involving her parents or murdered loved ones. After holding each other in front of the fireplace for a while, Snape had insisted that they move to the bed and Cassie perform her nightly ritual of clearing her mind before allowing herself to go to sleep. At first, she had resisted, just wanting to be able to drift off lazily in her lover's arms, but now that she had experienced a restful night, she was grateful for his persistence.

Having been once again reminded of why the dark and brooding wizard was such a good match for her, Cassie smiled as she stretched a bit and then slowly rolled over to touch him, but found that he was no longer in bed with her. She sighed, thinking that he had probably gone out to patrol again, and then got out of bed, intending to make some tea. She was still completely nude, and feeling quite chilled being in the dungeon bedroom, she went to the wardrobe to fetch one of Snape's grey nightshirts, pulling it over her head. Wearing his clothing while in the privacy of his quarters had become commonplace for them now, but every time Cassie did it, it reminded her of the first night they had slept together. It made her feel amorous and giddy, such a simple thing like feeling the fabric of his pajamas on her skin, something she'd likely continue to keep to herself. Nonetheless, she had a small smile on her lips as she walked into the Potions Master's kitchen because of it. Her smile grew enormously when she found that he was seated at his dining room table, rather than being out somewhere in the castle and away from her.

He was shirtless, wearing only a pair of dark green lounge pants, and Cassie took a few seconds to admire him as he sat there, scribbling away at something with so much intensity that she wasn't even sure if he realized she had entered the room. The darkness of the surrounding room amplifying his pale features and jet-black hair, Cassie made a mental note to get him more sets of those pajama pants, because she rather liked the way he looked in only them.

"Good morning," she said softly as she approached him, and he grunted to her in greeting, obviously absorbed in what he was doing. She could hardly be cross with him for his boorish response, because when he was this zealous about something, trying to distract him from it would only annoy him, and then he would go back to doing it. Instead of berating him, or make demands for his attention, she slowly went up behind him and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, and bent down to give him a warm kiss on his cheek.

She saw that he had _Şəfalı Iksirlərin Hamısı_ open on the table, and was copying text from it over to some parchment. Now her curiosity was peaked, and she was about to ask him why he was copying the text over, when he picked up his wand and waved it slowly over the freshly written words. Snape's handwriting changed from Azerbaijani to English.

"How long have you been awake?" Cassie asked, as she noticed that there were rolls of parchment on the table stacked neatly together, likely recipes that he had already translated that morning.

"Few hours," he said gruffly as he examined the one he had just completed. "Venom from a Phantasmal poison-arrow frog...that will be incredibly difficult to come by. I might be able to substitute viper venom, with the right variations," he was muttering, and Cassie knew he was speaking his thoughts out loud, rather than to her.

"Would you like some tea?" she asked as she started to pull out what she needed from his cupboards, and then she noticed that he had a cup of it beside him at the table. When she went to fetch it, it was still mostly full, the contents of it cold and forgotten in his mania. She brewed them their morning drink in silence, letting him continue his work and stealing glances at him, because she loved watching him in his throws of obsession like this with his brow furrowed, his curtain of hair framing his austere expression as he leaned forward to peer more closely at the book she had gotten him.

Snape finally tore his eyes away from what he was doing when Cassie set a steaming cup of the hot beverage in front of him, and went to sit across from him at the table. "Anything good?" she asked, taking a sip.

"This text has been extremely worthwhile to look through," he replied, and he started to carefully page through the book again. "I haven't translated the entire thing, but I've already come across several potions that I've never brewed."

"Good," Cassie said, smiling. "I'm glad you're enjoying it, Sev."

He closed the book then, although he appeared to be rather reluctant to do so, and then started to drink his own tea. "It's time I take a break from it, anyway. I need to patrol, see what Potter is up to."

"No, no!" Cassie said, shaking her head. "Severus, I can do that, you keep doing what you were doing."

"Cassie, it's not your responsibility," he started to say, but Cassie got up from her chair, intending to go get dressed and head out so he wouldn't have a chance to argue.

"I can handle it," she said, heading into the living room, but he had followed her.

"I know you can," he muttered before latching onto her upper arms to stop her in her tracks, and pulling her towards the couch. She yelped in surprise and delight as he nestled himself on top of her and began nuzzling her neck, his hand finding its way under the hem of the borrowed nightshirt she was wearing to start stroking her.

"I thought you'd be tuckered out after last night," she teased, and she gasped as he nipped at the soft flesh of her neck with his teeth. He shifted his weight, using his knee to quickly pry apart her legs, and she buried a hand in his hair, giving it a light tug, making him growl at the sensation.

"Never," he replied lowly. She wondered if he was in a similar mood as the night before, wanting to take things at an almost painstakingly slow pace, but her silent question was answered when he swiftly pulled his stiff cock out of his pants, and started to push the tip inside her already wet entrance. She inhaled sharply at the sudden penetration, and he suddenly looked up at her in concern, his black eyes searching her face. "Did I hurt you?"

"No," she breathed, "No, just a bit sore, is all," she said. Kissing her deeply first in apology, he started his thrusts out slowly, giving her a chance to adjust to his length inside of her once again. When she was fully beyond the pain and only feeling pleasure, she urged him on, digging the tips of her fingers into his butt cheeks, willing him to pound into her like she had wanted last night without restraint, and he complied this time, making her cry out so loudly that they were both glad that they were deep in the dungeons where no one could overhear.

"Will you always divert my attention away from important things, wretched girl?" Snape harassed her softly when they were done. He was seated on the loveseat, having put himself back into his lounge pants, seeming rather content to just watch her walk away to get ready for the day.

"Excuse me?" Cassie retorted with a giggle. "If I recall correctly, _I_ was the one that was going to get dressed and leave, but _you_ distracted _me!"_

"It was your fault," he said, following her into the bathroom now and turning on the water to the tub. "Wearing nothing but my nightshirt and that necklace."

"Well, next time I'll wear nothing at all," she said, and she was rewarded with a smart smack to her bottom, making her giggle even harder. They had a short, lighthearted argument about who was going to patrol, and finally Snape submitted, letting Cassie doing this favor for him so he could continue to comb through his Christmas gift at his leisure.

Her first stop was the Great Hall, and when she spotted Harry there, along with Ron, Fred, and George, she headed up to the third floor corridor. Nothing seemed amiss, so she slowly walked through the castle, politely greeting the few students and ghosts she came across, and then headed out to the grounds.

She was only by herself for an hour, and already she was finding out that to be alone with her thoughts was a mistake. She had started out enjoying the peacefulness of the nearly empty castle, and now being outside, the still grey sky and the snow-covered campus looked almost picturesque. But now, as the treeline of the Forbidden Forest came into view, she began to reminisce about the night she went searching for the centaurs, and the revelation that Firenze had made, and she began to think of wars and carnage and _choices._

Everyone said it like it was just so easy. Like, check a box, right or wrong, yes or no. She knew her father and mother were evil, there was no doubt about that. Being away from them for this long, she could say until she was blue in the face that she despised everything about them and what they stood for, but at the end of the day, they were her _parents,_ for goodness' sake. Granted, she had never really grown to have much affection for Voldemort, as he was inept at giving her any, but as a small child she had still longed for it in some way, had hoped she could eventually earn it. And as far as Bellatrix...she had countless memories of her madness and cruelty. But she also had some recollections of closeness and sentiment, of warm hugs and kisses, of playfulness and laughter. If her mother came to her someday, pleading for Cassie to come to her side, would it be so easy to deny her?

She tried to think of the benevolent influences in her life, of Molly and Arthur, of Andromeda and Ted, of the countless professors that had shown her kindness through her years at Hogwarts; even Narcissa, when she was younger, had shown her a maternal, loving relationship. If it came down to it, could she really betray all of those people, turn her back on them and everything they've tried to teach her through the years?

And then Cassie thought of Snape, the defected Death Eater, whom she could distinctly remember being in her father's inner circle when she was a child, who had been present so many times in her blood curdling memories, who sometimes was present in the nightmares that robbed her of a restful night's sleep. Now, she shared a bed with him when she could, shared the most intimate parts of her heart with him. Even knowing his past, having seen some of the horrific things he'd done as his younger self, she'd grown to trust him, love him. He had told her that he was planning to spy when her father came back, put himself in mortal danger from the get go, was already Dumbledore's right hand man.

She could never betray him, she was sure of it. It would break her very soul.

Cassie was pulled out her thoughts when she heard Hagrid cheerily calling her name from outside of his hut. She hastily tried to wipe away the tears that were starting to freeze to her cheeks, and waved to him, called back enthusiastically. Joining him for a bit of tea and some questionable blackberry muffins in his hut, she tried to excuse herself after a few minutes, as she had to trail Harry, make sure he was still out of Quirrell's sight. She was able to leave in due time, but had learned that Hagrid had found a dead unicorn the other night.

Suddenly, Cassie felt a gripping sense of urgency as she headed back to the castle. Oh, how she wished that she could have that sense of serenity that she felt this morning when she had woken up. It seemed fragile, so fleeting now.

It took some searching, but she found him in the library with Ron once again. She greeted them with smiles, but they looked burdened.

"Hi," Cassie said, coming to sit down next to Ron, and she raised her eyebrow when he suddenly slammed the book shut that he had been reading.

"Hello," he said quickly, exchanging glances with Harry.

"Did you two have a good Christmas?" Cassie asked slowly, now feeling quite awkward, like she had interrupted something secretive.

"Oh, you know," Harry said, and the boys where still looking at each other.

"You?" Ron asked meekly, finally tearing his eyes away from Harry to look at Cassie, but he was looking past her, like he couldn't bring himself to look her in the eye.

"Uh, it was okay," Cassie said. "I got suckered into going to Draco's Christmas Eve, which was thrilling as I'm sure you'd guess," and they exchanged glances again. Okay, something was up. "And I went to Tonks' parents' yesterday."

"Oh," Ron said. Silence.

"Your mom knit me a really nice sweater," Cassie said. "Cozy, as always."

"Yeah, me too," Harry said, clearing his throat.

"And Charlie sent me a dragon scale," Cassie continued. "Really cool." Now, both boys were looking down at the table. Cassie glanced at the stack of rather advanced history textbooks they had piled next to them, and suddenly, Harry put his arm over the titles, not being entirely subtle. "Listen, I know I'm not officially on tutoring duty, but do you two need any homework help? I'm open."

"No," they said in unison. Cassie looked between the two of them, wishing that one of them would give something up, because this was the strangest interaction she'd ever had with either one of them.

"Okay," she said, nodding. "Well, I'm going to go." She got up, intending to leave, because she could almost feel the tension vibrating through the air, when Ron suddenly piped up.

"You going to see Snape?" he asked rather loudly, and when Cassie turned to look at him, his ears had turned pink. Harry's eyes were now locked on her instead of on the table, seemingly looking for a reaction out of her now.

"Not at this particular moment," she answered, narrowing her eyes. "Why?"

"Do you trust him?" Ron asked then.

"With what?" Cassie asked, because she had no clue what the Gryffindor was trying to get at.

"We don't think you should," Harry piped up.

"Is there something you two want to tell me?" Cassie asked then. They exchanged glances again. Eleven year olds were not particularly good at being sly, she was noticing. Ron shrugged at Harry, and then Harry spoke, obviously for the both of them.

"No."

She left then, because obviously this conversation was going to go nowhere productive. But she knew then, that somehow, she had lost the boys' trust. But no matter, because she, along with Snape, was going to do everything she could to keep Harry Potter safe.

* * *

As the days passed and the term had started up again, Cassie noticed a few things. The first, was that Harry, Ron, and Hermione were continuing to spend an inordinate amount of time in the library, even between classes for minutes at a time. When Cassie had pondered out loud yet again what they were doing, Snape had responded, "Who cares? At least then we know where Potter is."

"Do you think they know about the Stone?" she asked.

"Even if they do, it doesn't matter."

"But they seem awfully apprehensive of you, Severus, and now me. What if they think we're trying to get - "

"And again, I reiterate: who cares?" Snape snapped at her. Gone was the tranquility, the easygoing nature they had enjoyed over Christmas break when Quirrell had left for part of it. Cassie had classes and studying to worry about, so she had little time to contribute to Quirrell-stalking, leaving a lot of it once again to the Head of Slytherin House. She had half a mind to say something to Dumbledore, to tell him that he could take care of it all himself, since he wasn't completely keeping them in the loop about it anyway. But she didn't, as she tried to keep her arguing with the powerful elderly wizard to a minimum. That, and she wasn't keen on revisiting the last conversation she had had with him, and had managed to avoid speaking with him so far.

The second thing she noticed, was that Quirrell seemed extra jumpy, was quite a bit thinner, and stuttered even more these days. She hoped it was because she and Snape were getting to him. They weren't exactly trying to hide the fact that they were tailing him every chance they could, and every day, she was hopeful that it would be the day that he just decided to quit and leave Hogwarts forever. But so far, no luck.

Snape's birthday was fast approaching, and Cassie was determined to make it special for him, even if both of them were stressed. It landed on a Wednesday, and she didn't know of an easy way to make sure that her stubborn Head of House would agree to stay in his quarters and actually relax. So, being the Slytherin that she was, she made sure that she had all of the proper areas covered. She paid Fred and George enough galleons to keep their mouths shut and to do her bidding without asking any questions, and had sent them on their missions. Their first, was to make sure that there was a party going on in the Gryffindor common room that was so fun, that not even the trio could resist leaving for the library that evening. The second, and which cost Cassie an even larger sum of gold, because Fred and George wanted to be at said party, was to do something so obnoxious in Defense Against the Dark Arts that Quirrell would have no choice but to have them in detention.

She didn't ask what they'd done when they came to her and said they'd been successful. She knew it must have been bad, because Quirrell had nearly passed out, and had assigned detention straight away. All she cared about was that she finally had an evening with her muse again. When she had Snape alone in his office and told him of her plan, he definitely was not convinced.

"Quirrell might cut detention early," he pointed out. "Or Potter might leave the common room. You have no way of knowing that anyone will stay put."

"Then I'll leave, go check on things so you can stay here," Cassie said, nearly pleading now. "Severus, I just want you to relax tonight, if nothing else."

"I don't need to relax!" he barked at her. She raised an eyebrow at him, putting her hands on her hips, like a stern mother.

"Really? You don't?"

"I don't need you looking after me like I'm a child," he spat, and then Cassie rounded the desk, coming to lower herself onto his lap and wrap her arms around his neck. She could feel that he was tense just by putting her body on his.

"I _do_ need to look after you," she countered softly, pressing her forehead against his, and she felt him let out a long breath. "That's what we do for each other. Will you let me do this for you, please?" She planted a kiss on his lips, and he started to relax even more.

"Alright," he said quietly, finally starting to return her kisses. "Fine."

"That's what I wanted to hear," Cassie said, smiling. She pressed her lips against his even harder, and then she stood up, taking his hand in hers, leading him to his quarters. She led him to one of the chairs, started the fireplace with a flick of her wrist, and poured him a glass of wine. She handed it to him, kissing him again, and then she moved her attentions to his neck, placing her hand on his face gently.

"Are you relaxed yet?" she whispered in his ear, her hand trailing from his face, down his torso, then going to rub over his crotch.

"Mmm," he said, taking a sip of his wine, looking at her mischievously. She was thrilled to see a look on his face other than pissed off or indifferent. "Not quite."

"Well," she said, smiling as she started to work at his belt, "Let's see if I can do something about that." She dropped to the floor, coming to rest on her knees between his legs, using both of her hands now to free him from his pants. He continued to sip his wine as he watched her with keen interest, and when she started to slowly pump his erection with her hands, he inhaled deeply.

She lowered her head, using her tongue to swirl around the tip of his enlarged cock, making him throw back his head in elation and groan, but still keep his eyes on her. She went slowly, creating a visual for him as much as a pleasurable sensation, teasing him as she continued to use her tongue to slowly lick at the tip, then start from the bottom and work her way up.

She took him into her mouth then, making a tight seal around the head of his dick with her lips, and he let out a low growl as she started to move her head up and down, her hands working the shaft as she went. Loving the sight of him losing control as she continued to work on him, she could feel her own arousal increase, a wetness pooling in her underwear as he panted. Using his free hand, he reached down to her head, lovingly brushing her hair out of her face and holding it back, simultaneously wanting to keep it out of the way so he could clearly see the action going on, while keep it out of her way as she went. Suddenly, she plunged her head down, taking him as deep into the back of her throat as she possibly could, and he moaned so loudly that she couldn't resist touching herself any longer as she continued. Keeping up the same enthusiastic pace, it wasn't long before he was climaxing in her mouth, and she swallowed, once again swirling her tongue around the tip when she was done, his panting finally starting to slow as he watched her.

"Come here, you silly thing," he muttered, setting his wine glass on the ground and pulling her onto his lap. He settled her so she was straddling him, her legs splayed on either side of his thighs. Before she had a chance to protest, he started to rub circles around her swollen nub, and she threw her head back in ecstasy, thankful for the sudden contact. He leaned forward, starting to plant kisses, then suck on the soft skin where her neck and collarbone meet. He had to wrap his arm around her to keep her from falling off the chair, she came so hard, and then she fell forward onto his chest, panting and giggling at the same time.

"So," she said between breaths, reaching down to retrieve his wine glass and steal a sip, "Are you relaxed yet?"

"Yes," he admitted, and she caught a rare smile on Severus Snape's face. She nuzzled into his neck, wrapping an arm around his chest to hold him closer.

"I got you a cake from the kitchens," she said, "Vanilla with buttercream."

"You spoil me," he murmured.

"Yes, and on that note," Cassie said, starting to peel herself off of him, "I'd better go make my rounds." She was hoping he was going to stop her, that he was going to say that he trusted the plan she had set up for the evening, but he didn't. So she smoothed her clothing out, and headed towards the door.

"Cassie," he said suddenly, standing up from the chair. "Do you have any jewelry in your dorm, something that's not sentimental?"

Cassie gave him a confused look. "Yeah, probably. Why?"

"I need you to fetch it, and meet me in my office when you come back."

"What for?" she asked, but he was already going to his bookshelves, rifling through the scrolls of parchment that he had translated from the antique potions book. She didn't press for answers, knowing he had something up his sleeve now.

She left him then, quickly making her way to Gryffindor tower, which sounded very much like there might be some loud music playing. She went by the library, and it was practically empty, with no sign of Harry or Ron inside, which meant that they were still probably in the their common room. Her next stop was the DADA classroom, and she smiled when she walked past, seeing Quirrell seated at his desk with his face in his hands, Fred and George yammering away animatedly, not looking like they were copying any of the lines they were likely assigned. So far, everything was going according to plan.

Ignoring everyone in the Slytherin common room when she entered, she quickly made her way to the dorm room that she rarely spent time in any more, and started rifling through her dresser, trying to find something that matched Snape's requirements.

"What, did you and your boy toy break up?" Laanstra sneered at her, who was lying on her bed, picking at her nails.

"Who said I was dating a boy?" Cassie said casually. Having just located a bronze bracelet with an emerald stone in the middle that she had gotten from the Malfoys one year, she then turned to leave, her dorm mates staring after her with their jaws hanging open.

She found Snape in his office like he had said, and he was starting to set up for brewing a potion, a cauldron on the fire already, a translated recipe hovering midair from a carefully placed charm.

"Okay," Cassie said, handing him the bracelet, and he looked it at briefly, then quickly tossed it onto his desk. "What are we doing?"

"It's called Aşağıdakı Layihəsi," he said, starting to pull ingredients from his stores.

"I love it when you talk nonsense to me," Cassie said sarcastically, having no clue what he had just referred to.

"It roughly translates to 'Draught of Following'," Snape explained, too engrossed in getting this going that he either didn't pick up on or was choosing to ignore her banter. "I found it in the text you gave me, I wanted to try it, but there are so many components I don't have, so many things that could go wrong if I use the incorrect substitutions."

"What does it do, if it works?"

"We'd put the bracelet into the finished potion, and then we'd bottle some up and throw it at Quirrell's feet," Snape said. He started to expertly, evenly chop what looked like some sort of large lizard's tongue. "Then the bracelet would glow, tell us certain things about him. A black glow would indicate malicious intent, yellow would be neutral, blue would be fear. And if it stopped all together, it would mean he was in a different vicinity from the object that we used."

"So if he left Hogwarts, we'd know for sure?"

"Yes."

"Okay," Cassie said slowly, "so what made you decide that this was suddenly a great idea?"

"I'm still not sure it is," Snape said, and he tossed a handful of his chopped product into the cauldron, a ball of flames shooting up momentarily. He didn't react, clearly expecting it to happen. Cassie, however, had nearly toppled over a chair when she had startled from it. "Like I explained, I'm going to have to substitute a lot of ingredients. It could go very wrong, tell us the wrong thing, or kill him - "

"I'd be okay with that."

"Or give him a lot of power unintentionally."

"Oh," Cassie said, biting her bottom lip. "Well, you're brilliant, Sev. If anyone can figure it out, you will."

"I know," he muttered, looking over the floating parchment carefully again. "I've just decided I'm sick of playing cat and mouse."

"Can't I just curse him and be done with it?"

"I've already run that by Dumbledore. He said no."

Cassie sighed. "Okay, let's do it. Tell me what to do, Potions Master."

They worked well into the night, and by the time they were done, they were so strung out from trying to get every detail right that there was no way they were getting to sleep. But when the elixir was a bright shade of blue and bubbling softly, Snape was satisfied that he had gotten it right, and Cassie was in no position to question his authority on the matter. So, they carefully dropped the bracelet into the thick liquid, and siphoned a small amount of it into a glass vial.

The next step then, was to find Quirrell, and throw it at his feet. Cassie was rather surprised that Snape was fighting her on it, because both of them were rather eager to do something that aggressive to the wizard that had been causing them so much grief. They decided to go together so at the very least, they could both see his reaction.

It was early morning, about an hour before the first students and staff would be heading to the Great Hall for breakfast, and they started to head towards Quirrell's classroom. Cassie was a tired, giddy mess by then, and had to refrain from playfully touching Snape as they made their towards their intended victim.

"You're sure we shouldn't run this by Dumbledore first?" she whispered when they were heading up the last staircase.

"He put me in charge of watching him," Snape said, shrugging. "This counts as watching him, doesn't it?"

"I think I've been a bad influence on you, Professor Snape," she replied, snorting in laughter. They positioned themselves outside of Quirrell's door, Cassie on one side, Snape on the other, standing about ten feet away from each other. Then, they paused. Snape adopted his same cold, collected demeanor as they waited, standing up straight with his hands folded neatly in front of him, but Cassie was pacing, gritting her teeth, ready to get on with it. Her heart nearly pounded out of her chest when she heard the doorknob started to turn, and she looked at Snape excitedly, grasping the vial in her hand. He nodded at her slightly, one side of his mouth curling ever so slightly as he looked at her.

"Morning, Quirrell," Snape drawled as the professor stepped out of his classroom, and Quirrell nearly jumped back in when he saw him.

"S-severus," he said, clutching at his chest. "W-what are you d-d-doing here?"

"Oh, Miss Black and I were just out for a little morning stroll," he said, and Quirrell turned, just as Cassie whipped the vial with all her might at the wizard's feet. The glass shattered, the blue liquid hitting the floor and vaporizing into the air in a cloud of smoke, making a loud, high-pitched hiss. Quirrell shrieked in fear, so startled that Cassie swore it almost sounded like he had two voices as he screamed.

"Oh, sorry, Professor," Cassie said sweetly as the cloud quickly disappeared. "Must have dropped something." She quickly walked towards Snape, and the two of them walked down the staircase, making their way to the dungeons once again. They would have loved to follow Quirrell and see how he was handling the sudden bombardment, except they wanted to see if the bracelet was reacting.

As soon as they got back to Snape's office, they pulled it from the liquid using a charm, and Cassie let out a chuckle when she saw that it was glowing a bright shade of blue.

"Fear," she breathed, and Snape nodded.

They were a few minutes late to breakfast, as they had to clean up the cauldron, and then Snape had a renewed burst of energy, pushing Cassie up against his desk and starting another round of vigorous love making once again. Cassie was sure she was going to keel over by the afternoon from the lack of sleep and their continuous romps in the dungeons, but she wasn't about to complain. She had the bracelet on her arm covered by the sleeve of her uniform robes, and when she checked on it while downing some eggs, she was pleased to see that it was still bright blue.

She looked up at Snape, who was seated at the High Table talking to Hagrid, and caught his eye, giving him a wink. The owls started to come in with the post, and Cassie was surprised when she saw that she had two letters, when she was used to getting none most days.

Grabbing the first one, she outwardly groaned when she saw Charlie's handwriting. She debating leaving it alone for now, because she was tired and had enough to deal with right now, but decided to bite the bullet and just read it now.

_'Green Pea,_

_Hope you liked my Christmas gift. I was so excited to send something to you, I sent this letter soon after. I realize now how much I've missed you. It may have taken this long because of how busy I've been. But I hope that you can take the time to write me one, too._

_I'll be anxiously waiting. I hope you're not too mad at me for everything._

_Love,_

_Charlie.'_

Cassie folded the letter back up. She wished Tonks was there right now, so she had someone to talk trash about him with. It really was a nuisance at this point, him pining after her now. She made a mental note to send him a response, to let him down gently so he could go back to dragon keeping without wondering about her.

She reached for the second one, a brown, crumpled envelope with no writing on the outside. When she opened it, she first saw her name written in elegant loops, and the handwriting looked familiar, to the point that it made her brain freeze for a moment. She didn't know why, but her hands were shaking as she unfolded the parchment to this letter.

' _Cassiopeia,_

_My darling daughter. I know this may come as a bit of a shock. But someone has helped Mommy get this to you. It's been so, so long, I do hope that you still remember me, my sweet girl. I've been thinking of you every single day since I've been here. I hope that one day I can return to you._

_I do hope that you're keeping the right company. Remember where you come from, whose heir you are. Be proud, be noble. Toujours Pur._

_Bella_

Cassie felt like her vision was going dark, that the room around her was spinning. She knew she should probably stay seated, but as her breathing started to come in ragged gasps as she started to panic, she had one thought: get to Snape, her anchor. Her safe space.

She stood, clutching the letter in hand, knowing no one else could see it or it might be the end of her. But within seconds, she was down on the ground, students around her screaming, the world around her going silent and black.


	19. Trust

Cassie was in Hagrid's arms when she came to with a start. The first thing she had asked, and rather shrilly, was "The letter? Where is it, Hagrid?"

"I have it, Cassie, it's safe," the voice of Severus Snape answered her, and she let her head hang back, breathing a sigh of relief, knowing that it wasn't in the hands of some random student. If the magical community wanted a reason to fly off the handle, this certainly would have been it. Snape was gliding along beside Hagrid, matching the half-giant's long strides as they moved quickly through the castle and away from the stares of the student body.

"We're goin' ter the hospital wing," Hagrid told her gruffly.

"No, no, Hagrid," Cassie said, and she started to wriggle in his grasp to try to free herself. "I don't need to go there, I'm fine, honest."

"Cass," Hagrid said sternly, "Yer passed out, almost landed right on yer noggin!"

"Actually," Snape said smoothly, "I think it would be more advantageous to get her to the Headmaster's office for the time being."

"And I can walk there," Cassie continued relieved that he was on the same page as her. Hagrid had stopped, looking between the two of them, and then let out a long, irritated puff.

"Fine, we'll go ter the Headmaster's, if that's what yer Head o' House wants," he said, changing direction, and off they went, "but yer not walkin'!"

When they got there, the gamekeeper set Cassie down on her feet as gingerly as he could, and then he pulled out a bar of chocolate from his pocket, forcing her to take it with her.

"Hagrid, you're very kind," Cassie told him softly, trying to smile at him to demonstrate that she was, indeed, grateful for his help even though she might not be cooperating at this very moment, and then she squeaked when he pulled her into a powerful, one-armed hug.

"I dunno what's all goin' on with ya," he said quietly, patting her on the head with his large hand, "I jus' know yer got a lot goin' on, with yer classes, and the bit with the centaurs, and the other day when you were cryin' but you were pretendin' like ya weren' when I asked yer about it. But take care of yerself, hear me?"

"I'll try," Cassie wheezed when he let her go. She watched him shoot a knowing look at Snape, and he turned to leave the two of them alone.

As they entered Dumbledore's office, Snape couldn't help himself, and had pulled Bellatrix's letter out of his robes to study it, his eyes still skimming the words as they approached the Headmaster's desk. Cassie sat down, nodding to Dumbledore politely, tearing open the chocolate the Hagrid had gifted her.

"Miss Black, are you feeling a bit better?" Dumbledore asked her gently, and she nodded again as she shoved an entire square of the candy into her mouth.

"Does it look like her handwriting to you?" Snape asked then, thrusting the letter over to Cassie, and she tentatively took it from him, as if somehow the ink and parchment were going to bite her. As she started to look over it again, hearing her mother's crazed voice read the words as if she were there, Dumbledore started to dig through a drawer in his desk.

"I haven't seen her handwriting in quite a while," Cassie disclosed, setting the letter on Dumbledore's desk, wanting it away from her for the time being. "Anything I might still have of hers is at Malfoy Manor, and I don't make it a habit of reading any of it. Brings back bad memories."

"But does it remind you of her penmanship?" Snape pressed, and she glared at him.

"I don't know, Severus, I was a child the last time I've gotten a card or anything of the sort from her, and I've never been lucky enough to receive a letter from Azkaban until this morning, so it's hard to recall!" she snapped. Dumbledore had pulled a small gold trinket from his desk and had laid it near the letter, and had now stood to start digging through a set of files on the other side of the room. Snape and Cassie hardly noticed what he was doing, however.

"You're lying," he sneered, turning in his chair and leaning towards her, his dark eyes flashing dangerously, his temper flaring to match her own. "You wouldn't have blacked out if you hadn't had some initial gut reaction to seeing that, had some subliminal recognition."

"So what, then, Severus? You think I'm in denial?"

"I am suspecting that, yes! And that's not going to help us come to a proper conclusion!" he spat.

"Well, forgive me, oh perfect one, for being a bit caught off guard by this whole thing! I wasn't expecting to get a letter from my criminally insane mother this morning when I was eating breakfast!" She broke off another piece of chocolate and put it in her mouth, and Snape looked like he was about to retort, when Dumbledore cleared his throat, having come back to his desk.

"The two of you spat," he said, sounding rather bemused, "like an old married couple." The words that Snape were about to say must have died in this throat, because suddenly, his skin looked very sallow, and he straightened out in his chair, eyeing the older wizard dubiously. Cassie, on the other hand, almost choked on her mouthful of chocolate, and Snape pulled his eyes away from the Headmaster long enough to reach over and pound her on the back a few times.

As though he took no notice of the reaction he had caused in his two visitors, Dumbledore then picked up the golden trinket and placed it in his eye, the round piece making it look like he was wearing an eye patch. Then, he picked up the letter Cassie had received that morning, along with another piece of parchment he had found in his files, looking between the two for a few minutes.

"Well," he said finally, setting the papers down, and popping the gold piece out, not looking so much like a pirate anymore. "After comparing the letter with a piece of Bellatrix's old homework, it appears that the script was indeed, written by the same hand. Granted, the recent letter's handwriting is a bit shakier, although I doubt she gets the chance to write very much while being contained in prison."

"So what does it mean?" Cassie asked. Dumbledore had slid her mother's letter over to her, but she shoved it back, not wanting to look at it again.

"Miss Black, we can't say why she sent it," he said gently.

"I don't care _why,"_ Cassie said sharply. "Someone offered her the chance, and she took it. But who helped her?" She caught the two wizards exchange a glance, and then she felt much more aggravated, the knowledge that they frequently held discussions about her making her want to sucker punch them both for always keeping her in the dark. "The Ministry controls Azkaban, right?"

"Yes," Snape answered her. She could tell he was watching her apprehensively now, looking for signs that she was going lose control.

"So why did someone who works for the Ministry help her send me something?" she asked. "What's their game?"

"One can't be entirely sure, Miss Black," Dumbledore said. "But my hypothesis, is that someone in the Ministry is trying to tempt you to do something you shouldn't."

"Like what?"

"Talk to your mother."

"But how? How would I send a letter to Azkaban?" she asked. "I don't understand."

"It's likely that there will be more letters coming, Miss Black, and possibly instructions how to reach her if you would so choose. But I believe that whoever is orchestrating this, is waiting for you to try, and then will use it against you," Dumbledore said. He was calm, collected, like always. Cassie, however, was not. She shook her head, then buried her face in her hands. "I know it's not fair, Miss Black - "

"Of course it isn't!" Snape snarled, answering for her. "Have they nothing better to do then sit around and think of ways to try and ruin her life?"

"Again, this is just my theory," Dumbledore continued. "I wouldn't say 'they', so much as it's our dear Minister Fudge, operating out of fear."

Cassie slowly looked up from her hands, the tears glistening in her eyes blurring her vision as she looked at her Headmaster. "Fear of what? I've done _nothing!_ Nothing has happened since that day in Hogsmeade, and supposedly I've been cleared of that in his eyes!"

The Headmaster and Head of Slytherin House looked at each other again, and Cassie was so fed up with the reticence, of them possessing knowledge that they chose to keep from her. She stood up from her chair, wanting so badly to leave the office and be out of their presence, but knowing she really shouldn't at that point. "You're not telling me something!" she accused them, standing behind her chair, placing her hands on the back of it, trying to ground herself so she wouldn't unintentionally start breaking Dumbledore's possessions. Snape and Dumbledore looked at each other again, and she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. "I promise, I will try to stay calm. You two are treating me like I'm an imbecile, like I'm too fragile to handle whatever it is!"

"You should know, Miss Black, that neither of us think of you that way," Dumbledore replied, and the look she gave him shot daggers.

"Enough. I want to know!"

Both wizards were silent for a few seconds, and then Cassie's glare fell on Snape. His black eyes were on her, his gaze unfaltering, and it almost broke her heart just looking at him just then. She could tell that he was internally debating with himself, that whatever he was about to say was going to be painful; whether it was going be for her or for him, she didn't know.

"Cassie," he started softly, and she came to sit back down in her chair beside him, hoping that being next to him again would pacify her vexation. "There is a prophecy in regards to you, located in the Department of Mysteries. It was made by Sybill Trelawney."

"Okay," Cassie replied, taking a shaky breath, "When?"

"A long time ago. When you were a small child."

She broke her eye contact with him, looking at Dumbledore now, not willing to allow him to sit idly by while Snape took the blame for whatever this was. "How long have you known?"

"Since the prophecy was made," Dumbledore told her. He had his hands folded on the desk, looking quite somber. "Sybill didn't even realize she had done it, which is usually how she makes her predictions, I'm afraid. I beg you not to be distrustful of her."

"So you have known for that long, and didn't tell me?" Cassie whispered to the Headmaster, disbelieving in his ability to continue to deceive her.

"I've known as well," Snape said, and she turned back to him, blinking back tears and her heart falling in disappointment, not expecting him to say that. Wanting to slap him, she took another slow breath instead, in an effort to keep her hands to herself.

"What does the prophecy say?"

"Fundamentally," Snape said slowly, "What you learned from the centaurs that night in the forest."

"Wait," Cassie said, and then she stood up quickly, her emotions getting the best of her. Snape stood as well, reaching out to grab her, but she took a step back, not letting him get near her. "So when I came to you that night, pouring my heart out to you, and you were more concerned about the fact that I went and saw the centaurs, instead of what I had learned from them, it was because you already knew? And you didn't tell me?"

"Cassie," Snape said lowly, taking a step forward, and she took another step away from him, "I was going to that night, until I learned where you had gone. I didn't think it would be beneficial to do it then, not after everything you'd been through."

"Well, thanks for sparing my feelings!" she snarled. "It's not like you haven't had _plenty_ chances to tell me the truth since then!" She turned towards Dumbledore, who was still seated, serenely watching the scene unfold. "And _you,_ that night on the Astronomy Tower, would have been the perfect chance to mention it!" She felt the red-hot anger, the one that made buildings rumble and glass shatter start to coarse through her, and for a second, she was willing to just let it run its coarse, because it would feel so good to have that release. But then she remembered that she had promised them that she would try to keep it under control. So she closed her eyes again, slowed her breathing, and cleared her mind. Like Snape had taught her.

When she felt the red-hot rage dispel after several silent minutes, she opened her eyes again, and there he was, standing in front of her still. She resisted the urge to break down, knowing now that he had kept something that imperative from her, when she had done nothing but canonize him for the past several months. "So that's it, then?" she continued finally, both them still watching her attentively. "Fudge knows of this prophecy, that I'm destined for destruction, and that's why I have a target on my back."

"Fudge doesn't necessarily take the prophecies seriously," Dumbledore responded, "At least from what I've heard from those who work with him. But it doesn't mean yours doesn't make him uneasy."

"I'm screwed then, aren't I?" Cassie said, running a hand through her thick hair, starting to feel absolutely defeated. "He's never going to let me be. Never let me work for the Ministry."

"We don't know that for sure," Snape said softly. She wished he would stop looking at her like that, like he was in so much anguish, when _she_ was the one who had been slighted.

"Not for sure, but likely," Cassie replied, and then she barked out a laugh as another thought crossed her mind. "Oh, Headmaster, don't tell me that this isn't what you wanted," she said, smiling sardonically at Dumbledore then.

"Cassiopeia, I have said nothing of the sort," Dumbledore replied coolly, a warning flashing in his blue eyes as he observed her. It was the look he gave her when she was stepping out of bounds, and she knew she had probably earned it much earlier in this conversation, but she didn't care.

"But if I can't become an Auror, then I'm free to go to your little training, aren't I?" she pressed on, coming to stand in front of his desk, leaning forward to challenge him, blue eyes meeting blue. "Isn't that convenient?"

"Miss Black, are you attempting to implicate me in something?" Dumbledore asked lightly.

"Can you blame me, after what you've been keeping from me all these years?" she hissed.

"I was merely exploring other options for you, knowing that Fudge may not let you become an Auror, knowing that you'd benefit from some formal education," he replied. "If he will still allow you into the program, I will not stop you."

"I don't believe you," Cassie said, and then she felt Snape's hand on her shoulder. She shrugged it off roughly, snarling, "Don't touch me!"

"Cassie!" he said sharply, "You are being completely disrespectful to the Headmaster!"

"She is under a lot of stress, Severus," Dumbledore interjected, "one can hardly blame her for lashing out. Perhaps she would benefit from continuing this conversation at a later time."

"Stop talking about me," Cassie said through gritted teeth, "Like _I am not here!_ " She turned around then, disgusted with the both of them, unable to look at the Headmaster any longer. "Lord knows that's how you two are used to conducting yourselves!"

"This discussion may end, only after we agree on what to do if more letters arrive," Snape countered gruffly, and he grabbed Cassie's forearm roughly, stopping her in her tracks, because she was headed towards the door. "And since you've been _insisting_ that you be including from now on, you are not going anywhere!" Her eyes were shooting daggers at him, but she stayed in place, ready to be done with this miserable interaction in Dumbledore's office, ready to be away from it.

"Fine," she said, turning back towards Dumbledore. "What do you want me to do?"

"I think, for the time being, Miss Black, we let as many arrive as we can, see how far Bellatrix and whomever is assisting her will take it. If their goal is to get you to respond, then I'd like to see what lengths they'll go to appeal to your emotions," Dumbledore said.

"And what if I _am_ tempted?" Cassie asked, suddenly feeling deflated. Dumbledore, for the first time during this conversation, looked like he was at a loss, like he hadn't considered it a possibility.

"You will show every letter to Professor Snape, straight away," he replied gently. "No exceptions. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir," Cassie replied. She was dejected, sick of looking at him, fed up with everyone disregarding her emotions and the fact that no one was considering the fact that Bellatrix _was_ her mother after all. Cassie had feelings; of course there would be the risk of her wanting to talk to her after all these years. "May I be excused?"

"Yes, Miss Black, you may go. And Professor Snape shall go as well, so you will be assured that we are not discussing you without your knowledge," Dumbledore said. He said it with an air of sincerity, but Cassie had had enough at that point. She left in a hurried pace then, heading down to the dungeons, not caring that Snape was right behind her.

She considered going to the Slytherin common room and straight to her dormitory, as it would likely be empty now with it being mid-morning. But her heart was in turmoil right now; a curious mix of never wanting to see Snape again, and wanting to be with him, to seek comfort from him and never let him go. So she battled out her conflicts in her head as she walked, and when she neared the point in the hallway where she needed to make a choice on which direction to go, she suddenly stopped walking and turned around. Snape almost smashed right into her, he had been following her so closely.

"Can I come to your rooms?" she asked quietly, knowing that he wouldn't want any staff or students to overhear them in the corridor. He looked at her in obvious bewilderment, but nodded in agreement. They continued on in silence, and once they were in the safety of Snape's living room and could speak freely, Cassie started in. "This doesn't mean I'm not fucking pissed at you!"

"Cassie, I was going to tell you, but after you came out of the forest, I didn't think it was an opportune time," he replied quietly, looking somber as he stood in the center of the room.

"Severus, when is it an opportune time to share something like that? Please, indulge me!" she said, exasperated. "I've been with you, day in and day out, sharing your bed, spending time with you, and you never once thought that it might be a good idea to tell me?"

"'Never once thought'?" he quipped, his voice growing louder as she provoked him. "Of course I've thought about it, every single day! But you know what stopped me, Cassie? Picturing your reaction to it! Because I knew you'd act like a damn martyr, throw another dramatic pity party!"

"Oh, so it's my getting upset to your _lies_ that's the problem!" she seethed. "Yes, that's what's wrong with this whole picture, Severus! Not the fact that you've known, _since I was a child_ , that I was going to play some giant part in my father's war! You saw how devastated I was when I heard it from Firenze! Did you think it would go well when I found out that you already knew?"

"So when I was supposed to tell you? When you started your first year at Hogwarts at age eleven? Or perhaps when you turned fourteen, because then you're so _very_ mature and ready to handle something like that? Tell me, what age, when you're still a bloody teenager to this day, is appropriate for me to drop something like that on you?" he yelled. "You've barely had a childhood as it is!"

"You don't have to remind me!" she retorted. "God, Severus, I wouldn't have expected you to tell me that years ago! Why I'm mad is that you didn't bother to mention it now! I don't want secrets kept between us!"

"Why?" he barked, his black eyes glimmering with embitterment, his entire body tense as he defensively observed the pacing girl in his chambers. Perhaps he had entered the argument intending to remain calm, but as soon as Cassie flew into a rage, it was nearly impossible for him not to match her semblance.

"Because I love you!" she cried, "And I wouldn't have expected you to keep something like that from me, not after everything!"

"You _what?"_ he nearly shouted in response, and what came out of his mouth was a knee-jerk reaction. His incredibly astute mind must not have fully comprehended what she had said right away, because he seemed to freeze in place for a few seconds, his jaw falling open in awe, no words coming forth to form a response.

"I love you, Severus Snape!" Cassie repeated passionately, coming up to him then, her face inches from his as she stood on her tip-toes. "So none of this secretive crap any longer, do you hear me? We're in this together."

He nodded slowly, and she pressed her lips to his. The contact seemed to reanimate him then, because he encased her hand in his, slowly leading her to the loveseat and sat down, indicating for her to join him. "How can you say that," he started slowly, his words delicate, as if he were still trying to process what she had said, "When I betrayed your trust so recently?"

"Because I do, regardless," Cassie explained gently. "I think I have for a while."

"Me, too," he said quietly, and Cassie smiled at him, taking his hands in hers and squeezing them. "I love you, too, Cassie."

"You don't have to say it just because I did - " she started to say, but he silenced her by leaning forwards and pressing his lips to hers.

"I'm saying it because I feel it too, you silly thing," he reassured her, the rich tones of his voice resonating through her very being. He had classes to teach, she had lessons to attend, but neither of them paid their responsibilities any mind as they made their way from the living area to the bedroom at a leisurely pace. It was a song they had danced to numerous times, the touching of skin on skin, the pressing of lips to fevered flesh, but this time it was different. Perhaps it was knowing that the secret between them had now come to the surface, was no longer a source of potential destruction to their union, but they seemed to be freed of some sort of imperceptible meddler, some weight they hadn't realized had been pressing upon them and putting tension on their bond.

When they were done and Snape was holding Cassie in his arms, lying warm and comfortable in his bed, they exchanged those three little words again. It made her smile, her heart dance, feel so complete that all the troubles from earlier in the day seemed almost nonexistent. But eventually, the couple had to leave the contentment of being together in the bed, and started to make themselves look presentable so they could go about the rest of their day.

They were both abnormally quiet as they put on their clothing, their normal sprightly banter absent as their minds wandered in thought. The conversation that had taken place in Dumbledore's office, while feeling like a lifetime ago now, had taken place only hours earlier.

Cassie was the first to speak as she shrugged her school robes over her uniform. Snape was almost fully dressed, going to retrieve his black cloak from its resting place near his bedroom door and pull it over his shoulders, when the words came out of her mouth. "Severus?"

"Hmm?"

"I should talk to Dumbledore about that training, shouldn't I?"

He pulled his billowing cape on, ever looking like the cold, intimidating Potions Master that Cassie had grown to find so familiar and comforting, despite his frightening reputation. In the span of a few months, he had gone from her friend and sometimes confidant, to her best supporter, her lover, her everything. So when he turned to her, his black eyes communicating uneasiness and gravity all in one, she knew she couldn't take his answer lightly.

"Yes."

* * *

As the days went by, Cassie did her best to fall into what one would consider a normal routine of classes and studying once again, peppered with making sure Quirrell wasn't up to anything virulent, and of course, seeing Snape when she could. Both she and the black-haired professor were continuing to function under quite a bit of stress and on little sleep, something that was partially their fault, as they couldn't seem to be in the same room without starting to grope each other. But ever since the revelation of their true feelings for one another, they seemed to handle the constant pressures a lot better. Over all, they were operating much more smoothly as an entity, especially when it came to tracking down Potter to ensure his safety, or corner an even gaunter-looking DADA professor.

It was the morning of the next Gryffindor Quidditch match, when Cassie received her next letter from Bellatrix. Ever since the initial one, she had been dreading the sight of an owl coming her way at breakfast, and each morning she held her breath as the students around her had their mail delivered to them, thankful that she was spared again for another day. But on this day, the one that they had a plan in place to make sure Potter wasn't going to be in grave danger and Cassie needed to be on alert, was the day that the large barn owl decided to bequeath her the anticipated message.

Knowing it wasn't the owl's fault that the letter had arrived on that specific day, she let it nibble on her waffle. Her appetite had suddenly left her at that moment, anyway. She debated opening it at the table, but then recalling how she had reacted after reading the last one, she decided to wait until she was alone with Snape. She allowed him a few more minutes to finish his own breakfast, and then she stared up at him, catching his eye. He seemed to notice what was in her hands right away, and nodded slightly.

"Today, of all days," he muttered, echoing her own acerbic thoughts on the rather rude timing as they crossed the threshold into the entry hall. Cassie knew his mood was volatile, anticipating the upcoming match, knowing that Potter could be in real danger in only hours' time. Snape pulled the enchanted bracelet out of his robes to give it a quick glance and then stuffed it back in for safe keeping; sunny yellow, a safe color for now.

They quickly made their way to the dungeons, as Snape wanted to be situated on the Quidditch field soon. The plan was for him to referee the match, and Dumbledore was even attending, hopefully ensuring that the same antics on Potter's broom would dare not be repeated. Cassie, however, was going to remain in the castle to make sure no one was going to try to breech the third floor corridor.

Stopping in the Potions classroom, Cassie made to open the letter, her hands shaking, and then she passed it off to Snape. "You read it first."

"Cassie - "

"Please." She looked at him, her blue eyes imploring his aid, and with a sigh, he started to open it. She watched his face anxiously, but his expression didn't give her any clues as to what the written words said as he read it. Finally, he spoke.

"No instructions on how to reply," he said slowly.

"That's good, right?"

"That likely indicates there's at least another coming," he replied quietly. He handed it to her then, and she took a deep, cleansing breath before accepting it.

_Cassiopeia,_

_I do hope that this finds you in good health. No doubt, my last attempt at communication startled you. I suspect that the general public tries to poison your thoughts of me._

_I want nothing more than to hug you, to give you a kiss, my sweet girl. Would that please you, as well? This is a dark, lonely place. My thoughts of you are all that keep me rational._

_Remember, that loyalty is everything._

_Bella_

Cassie immediately started to fold the parchment up as soon as she was done, stuffing it into her pocket and trying to force the words from her mind.

"You need to keep your focus today," Snape reminded her, not unkindly, and her blue eyes shot up to his face.

"I don't need to focus," she grumbled. "I just need to plant myself in front of the third floor corridor, and if Quirrell wants to get in, he'll have to go through me." Rather than fall to pieces, she was feeling impassable, almost willing Quirrell to try something that day. If he did, she could finally deal with him how she wanted to, and not keep dancing around the issue like Dumbledore kept insisting they do.

They parted ways in the entrance hall, Snape heading down the Quidditch pitch along with the majority of the student body and staff. Cassie headed straight to the third floor and planted herself in front of the door that contained the cerberus. As far as she, Snape, and the Headmaster knew, Quirrell had indicated that he was going to go down to the game like everyone else. So if he was going to show up here, she was expecting that it would be later, well into the match.

She was a bit caught off guard, then, when she had only been there for a few minutes, and suddenly a figure came around the corner. It was a pale, quavering shape, one topped off with a large, purple turban. When they locked eyes, both of them paused for a few moments, sizing one another up.

"Professor Quirrell," Cassie said, giving him a single nod. She was a bit stunned at his appearance, seeing him up close just now. His skin was incredibly pasty, his frame emaciated, and he was sporting large, dark circles under both eyes, to the point that he almost looked like he had been punched multiple times.

"M-Miss B-Black," he said, and even his voice was hoarse, raspy. "W-what are y-you - "

"I think you know the answer to that," she said sharply. Her wand was still stored in the robe of her pockets, but the way he looked now, she wasn't sure she'd even need it.

He took a few strained breaths, and she thought maybe he'd just fall over right then. "D-dumbledore out on the p-pitch, and y-you're w-wandering a-around h-here?"

"Yeah, he's there in case he needed to interfere with Harry's possessed broom," Cassie said, looking him up and down, because now he was using the wall to brace himself. "Don't try to tell me you weren't anticipating that."

"M-maybe I'll h-have t-to t-t-tell him th-that - " Quirrell started, and then he winced, like he was in sudden pain. Cassie watched him in confusion, wondering if taking him to the hospital wing would be too much of a mercy.

"Tell him what?"

"Th-that y-you w-were after the - " This time, he cried out, doubling over in pain. He straightened back up after a few seconds, and then his eyes flitted to the wall, like he was intently listening to something.

"Professor," Cassie said slowly, "I don't think you're in any form to threaten _me._ And I'm not moving away from the door. So, unless you feel like trying to make me, and I kind of hope you do _try,_ then I suggest you go find a place to lie down."

Quirrell looked at her then, looking like he was intently weighing his options, and then he wheezed, "I'm sorry," before whimpering a bit. Cassie raised an eyebrow at him, watching him as he turned and started to slowly make his way back down the corridor. With the sorry shape that the wizard was in, Cassie knew that the Stone was safe for the time being, that there was no way he'd be getting past the three-headed dog without getting ripped to pieces. Even so, she stayed in her spot, knowing that was the plan, that Snape would be less than thrilled if she abandoned her post early. She was elated then, when the Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff match seemed to end rather quickly, and students started to flood the castle again.

She found Snape in his office, and he was livid, looking like he was ready to attack at a moment's notice.

"So the little rat knew that Dumbledore would be out of the castle and used the opportunity to go after the Stone?" he spat.

"Isn't that what we planned for?" Cassie pointed out, trying to calm the agitated wizard, as he was ready to tear someone's throat out. "That's why I stayed here!"

"Yes, but had I known that's what he was going to do, _I'd_ have to stayed here, not put you in harm's way!"

"Severus, I'm fine!" Cassie said, reaching out for his arm, and he growled, but he didn't shrug off her touch. "And would you have rather he tried to kill Potter again?"

"No, of course not!"

"Well, then there's no winning, is there?" she said.

"I suppose not!" he snarled.

"He looked awful, Severus. Like he's gravely ill, or something's sapping his powers. Even if he'd attacked me," and the Potions Master snorted at her, obviously appalled that she was bringing up the matter, "I'd barely even have had to lift my pinky and I'd have fought him off."

"If he's gravely ill, then he might be more aggressive in going after the Stone," Snape muttered, and he stopped pacing, pulling the girl towards him, starting to rub her upper arms. He looked contemplative, even as he used the familiarity of her form to find composure.

"I think it's more than that," Cassie said, resting the side of her face on his chest as she wrapped her arms around him, "there's got to be. He just seemed so undulating, almost like he's possessed."

"Yes, there's something I can't quite put my finger on," Snape replied.

"Don't you think there's something that Dumbledore isn't telling us? Like he's known all along and he just isn't letting on?" she asked, and her lover suddenly pulled away, enough to look her in the eyes somberly.

"Indeed. I'd expect nothing less from Dumbledore."

Cassie thought back to the recent meeting she had with the Headmaster, where they had discussed in detail, the advanced education he wanted her to attend in Brazil, and she felt anxious, unsure. She had mentioned to Snape that the Headmaster probably had an unsaid agenda, one that he wouldn't share with either of them. "But you trust him?"

"Yes."

Cassie didn't trust the Headmaster's intentions, mainly because he obviously wasn't openly sharing everything with them. But she knew Snape did, so for now, her trust in the Head of Slytherin's judgment would have to do.


	20. Declarations and Distraction

In the weeks that went by, Snape and Cassie impatiently waited for the next move to be made by the craven Ministry. Snape found himself watching the parade of owls enter the Great Hall each morning just as restlessly as the seventh year witch did, wondering if that day would be it, the day that Fudge would be anticipating her to make a dire mistake, and try to hang her for it.

So far, Cassie received two more letters from her incarcerated mother. Both of them were similar in tone to the two previous ones, almost as if she were being coached in what to write in them; some generic, warm sentiment, spiced up with a portentous cautionary at the end, something that Bellatrix likely had skillfully negotiated to add. Even in her secluded state, Snape had no doubt that she was still masterful at manipulation, having had years to contemplate on how to play on people's emotions. The letters to her daughter, while unsuccessful at completely shaking Cassie so far, were slowly starting to ramp up in pleas to her tendencies to empathize, making Cassie shut down for a few hours at a time. When Snape had asked her if the letters were making her feel compassion for her mother's situation, she had denied the accusation wholeheartedly, but he wasn't quite convinced that the girl was capable of completely separating her emotions. He knew Cassie too well, knew that she was incapable of seeing Bellatrix as only a monster, even with everything that she had done. It was why he had to keep tabs on her, make sure she wasn't _actually_ going to be enticed to try to reach out to her and get herself into trouble.

But so far, no information was given to Cassie on how to reach Madam Lestrange. So they continued on with their unusual routine, taking turns watching the ensorcelled bracelet that was linked to Quirrell, and following Potter, who was growing just as cavalier with Cassie as he had with Snape. It was a bit endearing to him, when she'd get upset that an eleven-year old was getting mouthy with her. She brought it up to him yet again when they were alone in his quarters for the evening.

"But it's like he's avoiding me now!" she said, looking absolutely forlorn that Potter, along with his almost as equally bothersome Weasley companion, had told her off.

"And?" Snape drawled, cocking an eyebrow at her. They were on the loveseat together, he sitting straight up attempting to read for leisure, with Cassie's legs strewn lazily across his lap as she attempted to study.

"Sev," she said, exasperated at his composure, even though on the inside he was feeling rather amused at her naivety, "It doesn't bother you that he basically hates us, even though we're spending all this time and effort to keep him _safe?_ "

"I do not need an unending cascade of gratitude, in order to do what is honorable," he responded to her smoothly, knowing that the condescending comeback would antagonize her. But he couldn't help himself at times, rallying those types of responses out of the girl. It was her vehemence, her ability to swing from one end of the spectrum to the other in a matter of seconds, that made her so interesting to him at times.

"Well, aren't you so noble," Cassie replied quietly, folding her arms across her chest. "Apparently, I don't function the same way."

"No, because you have an unending desire to have everyone like you," he said, and she turned to him, her blue eyes flashing with annoyance at his quick answer. She pulled her legs away from his lap then, and sat up. Snape sighed quietly, because even though he was intentionally trying to pick a bit of a fight for his amusement, he wasn't appreciating that she was denying him her physical contact now.

"Oh, really?" she said, standing up and closing the textbook she had been reading. "Well maybe I don't give a shit if _you_ like me."

One corner of his mouth started to curl into a smile, because now she was being playfully catty, encouraging the sparring. And that usually led to one thing between the two of them. "You don't care if I have a fondness for you?" he asked. She was slowly heading towards the bedroom now, taking careful backwards steps as her eyes stayed trained on him. She shook her head slowly, and he could tell she was trying to hide the sly smile that was playing at her lips.

"No, I don't, Severus."

Hearing his name on her lips in that inviting, glossy tone ignited something in him then, as it usually did, and he pounced from the couch. He took a few long, quick strides to cross the room, catching her petite, giggling frame in his arms and pulling her the rest of the way to his bed.

"Let me show you," he growled, pushing her back onto the bed, "How much I _like_ you," and she moaned softly as he began to caress her breasts, plant kisses along her collarbone. Her hands were roaming all over him, tugging at the layers of cloth that were barriers between skin touching skin. She started to yank at his robes, haphazardly pulling at them to get the attire out of her way, and he found himself amused yet again at her eagerness to get close to him, to feel him.

Cassie had his shirt off, and had somehow managed to wrestle herself on top of him, when suddenly, her words jarred Snape out of their enjoyable antics. "It's black!" she gasped, and his eyes immediately shot to the bracelet around her wrist. For a split second, he hoped she was mistaken, because at the moment he was rather enjoying the feeling of the young woman mounted on top of him, the warmth of her still-clothed loins inches from his strained hard-on. But when he saw that the trinket was in fact, gleaming a dark shade of ebony, he immediately sat up and grabbed Cassie by her upper arms, guiding her off of him.

"Where did you see Potter last?" he asked her, seeking to formulate and stick to a plan, because the color of the bracelet was indicating that they needed to move quickly.

"The library," she answered him, frantically replacing the garments that he had just taken off of her body, and grabbing her wand.

"Find him," he commanded, "make sure he's safe. I'll go to the third floor corridor, go after Quirrell."

They executed their plan, Cassie taking off to find the boy, Snape going to find the deceitful professor. He first went to the third floor corridor, but there was no sign of Quirrell. Nor was he anywhere near the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. His next thought was to go to the library, in case Quirrell, who had still been looking ailing and macabre as of late, had finally snapped and decided to openly go after Potter regardless of who was around. But he found nothing amiss there, Cassie sitting at a table nearby Potter and a few other Gryffindor first years, not even pretending to be doing anything besides watching them.

She got up as soon as she spotted him, meeting him at the doorway. "He's gone," she whispered, pointing at her wrist, and Snape was at a loss now, because the jewelry looked normal, any hint of a glowing enchanted color absent.

He looked to Potter, who shot a suspicious glare at him momentarily, before returning to whatever conversation he was having with the Granger girl. "Did you notice it change color before it stopped?"

"No."

Both of them uneasy, they patrolled the corridors for about an hour, before going back to Snape's quarters for the night. They continued to keep an eye on the bracelet, glancing at it every few minutes or so to see if its appearance changed. But Quirrell was still gone. Snape worried that somehow, the spell created by the potion had worn off or been broken, and Cassie reassured him that it wasn't the case, trying a few times that night to pull him back into their game of seduction. But he could not be distracted from his uncertainties, no matter how many times the young witch kissed him or groped him, much to his lover's dismay.

It wasn't until the bracelet started to glow a soft yellow early into the next morning that Snape started to relax a bit. At least now, he knew that the spell was still in place, that they could still use it to keep an eye on him and they wouldn't have to constantly be prowling the castle, looking for signs of sinister activity. But the sense of security was rather short-lived, because at breakfast, Quirrell looked much healthier, refreshed, and much further away from his death bed. His swift change in condition was incredibly perplexing, something that Cassie agreed with and didn't have an answer for either. Even Dumbledore, who Snape always had to consider very well might have a plausible answer but might not be sharing it with him, seemed a bit puzzled.

Quirrell's abrupt changes in condition happened once more in the next month. Snape and Cassie watched together in confusion as he went from looking energetic and healthy, to rather atrophied and tired again. Then, with the use of their bewitched bangle, they indirectly witnessed him leave the Hogwarts grounds again, once again returning the next day looking vigorous.

Snape brought up the fact that unicorn blood was being found in the Forbidden Forest to Dumbledore. The Headmaster neither confirmed, nor denied that he felt that this might be a plausible explanation to Quirrell's miraculous recoveries. Rather, he merely said, 'mmm,' and continued on combing through the book he was reading, taking a sip of his hot chocolate, and wouldn't speak of the topic with him any longer.

But even with all of these inconveniences and constant things to be considering this school year, Snape was trying not to take for granted that he had a partner in everything, someone to help alleviate the stresses. Some days, he felt like he had only a few minutes to spare to even think of her, between worrying of Quirrell's antics, and Potter's safety, and teaching classes, and whether or not the Ministry was going to try something more drastic than they were anticipating. But when he did have those fleeting unoccupied minutes, oh, did he cherish them. He was well aware that he was not good at verbalizing the fine points he found in Cassie, and in fact was rather hasty to point out her flaws to her face. It was a habit ingrained in him since he was young, that negatives always be spoken of, and the positives never be given the light of day. No, that would make one too vulnerable, to admit that they found something endearing about another human being.

He was slowly getting better at being affectionate and gracious with her, at least he hoped he was. Overall, she didn't seem to mind his harshness, his quick temper; not that she didn't have one to match at times. In fact, she almost seemed to embrace the negative aspects of his temperament, something that made him question her sense of judgment. That, or she had been around him so much and for so long that she was just used to it. Either way, it made him appreciate the girl even more, that she could not only tolerate him, but actually seemed to enjoy being around him.

As Valentine's Day approached, he found that he was growing a bit concerned about making the holiday memorable for the young witch that he exchanged I-love-you's with. He had meant the words all of his soul. What do you do for someone you felt so strongly about, to put those words into action, that was more than candy, or stupid flowers, or a poorly written sonnet? He considered getting her nothing rather than something that seemed forced and cheap. For a short time he almost thought it better to just spend time with her, and she would probably be just fine with that, knowing the genial girl. But he wasn't satisfied with that. So as the annual holiday drew closer, he continued to wrack his brain for the perfect gift.

Then it finally dawned on him, to make her an elixir he had never contemplated before, because he never had someone in his life that he would even fathom giving it to. It was intricate, with many detailed steps and delicate ingredients that he wasn't that used to working with. But it wasn't that time consuming, and would take him all of an evening to brew. It was ideal, and even as he began to gather the odds and ends to start making it, he felt his despondent heart beat a bit faster in his chest, the unfamiliar feeling of his guts twisting in excitement, something that he was starting to feel much more frequently the more he was around her.

The anticipated day was upon them, landing on a Friday. The only conversation Snape and Cassie had exchanged was that they would meet up that evening when classes and Snape's supervision of detentions were done. He kept his fingers crossed that Quirrell wouldn't be up to anything too malevolent that night and spoil the fun. Even as Snape sat at the High Table and picked at his breakfast, he shot momentary glares at the turban-wearing professor, daring him to try anything trivial. The next thing to keep an eye out for was the mail, and as the owls flocked in, Snape didn't realize he was holding his breath; he knew if Cassie received a letter from Bellatrix today, it might put a damper on the mood and there would be no helping it. At first, it didn't seem like anything was heading towards her, but then he realized that there was a second wave of birds coming through with the extra cards and packages being exchanged among the students.

One rather large barn owl caught his eye for some reason, soaring towards the Slytherin table, and Snape watched in horror as it made its way towards his lover. For a split second, he thought it couldn't possibly be for her, because in the mess of wings and beaks that were trying to make their way to the right students in the hall, he could have sworn he saw a flash of pink in its talons. If that were the case, there was no way it could have been meant for her; who in their right mind would be sending her a sing-o-gram today?

And then he saw it, the grandiose, rose colored card in her grip as the school owl took off again. The students sitting around her were fussing now, begging her to open it so they could hear what was written inside. Of course, everyone knew it would be better for her to do it now, or it would only be louder, flashier later on. Even so, the girl's eyes shot up to where he sat, and he could tell that she was feeling quite sheepish, the expression on her face apologetic, and then she made to get up from the table, likely intending to get out of the hall and away from prying eyes with the Valentine's card in hand. He was silently willing her to get out without causing a commotion as well, mainly because he wanted to get to the bottom of who had sent it to her.

Cassie got as far as standing up, and the card was ripped from her hands by Babbs, the Slytherin prefect, and before Cassie had the chance to snatch it back, he had passed it down the table. It passed through the hands of not one, not two, but three more seventh years, landing in the hands of Wladyslawa Laanstra, and then the girl had the audacity to open it. It exploded in a cloud of pink and red glitter, showering the surrounding occupants of the table, and burst into a cheery little song. The words barely registered to Snape, he was so angry that the other Slytherins had taken to doing something so childish, but now he was listening for the culprit. Finally, he heard who had sent it, as the words from the card were being spoken out loud. He, along with the rest of the hall heard the declarations of love from Charlie Weasley.

Another commotion erupted at the revelation, this time coming from the Gryffindor table. The Head Girl, Fiona Jenour, had stood up, and was shouting obscenities in Cassie's direction, something along the lines of it not being fair, that she _had_ her chance and had blown it, and let someone else have a turn. Oohs and aahs and laughter ensued, and now professors surrounding him were standing, trying to calm the noise in the Great Hall. Cassie, looking rather annoyed, was heading out now.

He wanted to follow after her right away, but thought better of it. First, he went down to the Slytherin table to speak with the students that had been responsible for taking the card away from her. Careful not to actually take any house points away in the process, Snape assigned all of them detention for their antics. Once the Great Hall seemed to be in a much calmer state, he went to find Cassie. Not knowing what kind of state she might be in after that very public humiliation, he was very surprised to find her in the entrance hall, leisurely standing against the wall as if she were waiting for him, a smirk plastered on her beautiful face.

"What do you find so amusing, after all that?" Snape asked her quietly. Without saying a word, the two of them started to head towards the dungeons so they could have some privacy. He was starting to think they'd be better off taking their breakfast in his rooms so they wouldn't have to make this trek so often, although it would be highly suspicious.

"The ridiculousness of it all," she answered him after some time had passed and they were deep underneath the castle, less likely to be overheard by passersby. Snape wanted to respond, but he waited until they entered his classroom and had closed the door.

"I assigned them all detentions," he told her, and she gave him a knowing smile.

"Sev, you didn't have to do that. They're stupid kids."

"You say that like they're not the same age as you," he quipped, and she laughed. "You don't think they deserved to be punished?"

"No, it's not that," she said slyly. "I was just intending to get them back on my own."

"And here I thought you were trying to be the sophisticated one," he mused.

"Now what gave you that idea?" Cassie answered him, and she came up to him, standing on her tip toes to plant a sultry kiss on his lips. She knew just how to get him going, get his blood warmed up. The little vixen.

"Don't try to distract me," Snape growled lowly. "You think we came down here to talk about your idiotic classmates?"

She sighed then, and for the tiniest second, he was distracted by the movement of her bosom, the way that her breasts strained against the buttons of her uniform shirt when she breathed. But only for a bit. "You want to talk about Charlie - "

"I find the topic reasonable, don't you think?" Snape snapped, his mind promptly yanked in another direction as the Weasley boy's name fell upon Cassie's lips.

"Severus, don't get all worked up now. It means nothing," she started, and even though he knew that what she was saying was likely, that he had no valid reason to doubt her devotion to him, he found that his jaw was clenching, and that his hands were starting to ball into fists even as he looked at her.

"Then why," he said slowly, trying to keep his low voice even in an effort to be fair to her and not explode, "is he sending you love notes on Valentine's? Did you not tell him off when he sent you the last letter, begging you to take him back?"

Cassie's eyes were cast down to the floor when he asked her the question, and then she looked up at him, her big blue eyes expressing her uncertainty as she contemplated her next words. Snape's eyes flitted down to her mouth, because now she was biting the corner of her bottom lip, something that drove him wild, made him want to forget everything they were disputing about and overrun her with kisses, but he restrained himself. He wondered if she knew that the tiny little motion had that visceral effect on him, if she was attempting to use it to her advantage, or if it was just a nervous tick.

"I did, Severus, although I wouldn't exactly call it telling him off," she said then.

"What does that mean?" Snape hissed in response. "You politely declined? That you still left the boy with a bit of hope?"

"I don't think so - "

"Cassie, you either know, or you don't!" he interjected.

"Severus," she said then, and her expression was suddenly rather stern, daring him to continue on with his tirade. It was another reason why he loved her, that she could match his peevishness when the need arose. It certainly kept things interesting. "I didn't leave him with any hope! Because there is none! Perhaps I wasn't as forward as say, _you_ would have been in the response."

"Well apparently, you _should_ have been!"

"Oh, Severus," Cassie said then, sounding quite exasperated, "Do I have to remind you, once again, that he was my best friend at one point? That I didn't want to be rude to him because of that? Do we have to let this ruin today?"

"I just don't like the idea of that boy thinking he has any prospect of winning your heart back," Snape growled, and then she strode over to him quickly, wrapping her arms around his torso, embracing him tightly.

"Not in a million years, would he ever have a chance," she said, looking up at him and resting her chin on his chest. "My heart belongs to _you_ _,_ Severus." He looked at her for a few seconds, placing a tender hand on her cheek.

"I know," he said finally, and bent down to kiss her, taking a few extra seconds to wrap his long arms around her and return her embrace. "But your reply to his love note better be vulgar. I want lots of name calling."

She snorted in laughter then, pulling out of their hug to playfully shove him away. "I'd better just let you write it then!"

"This will all be so much simpler when we don't have to hide any longer," he said then, sighing as he realized they only had a few minutes before they had to once again, head their separate ways for classes.

"Simpler, yes," Cassie said, "But you have to admit, it adds a bit of fun, having to sneak around."

"As it may be. I also wouldn't mind being able to boast the fact that you're mine," he said smoothly, and she grinned at him.

"For some reason, I can't imagine you parading me around. You're not exactly the bragging type."

"Not under normal circumstances. But look at you," Snape replied, and he kissed her again. His sentimental words must have had an impact on her, because now her tongue was in his mouth, and she was tugging at his robes, the way she did when she was growing quite frisky. "Cassie," he breathed, placing his hands on her shoulders gently. "Cassie, you have lessons. I have a class arriving in minutes."

She pulled away from him, looking quite piquant with her cheeks now rosy and lips slightly pouting from his denial. "You're a tease," she bantered.

"Save it for tonight," he told her. "I have something for you."

"Oh? And what might that be?"

"You'll have to wait and see."

She scowled at him, although he knew it was of playful nature. Heading towards the door, she suddenly stopped and turned towards him one last time. "Oh, I have something for you, too." In one smooth motion, she pulled her tucked uniform shirt from the top of her skirt, lifting it up over her chest, and revealed a black and purple lacy corset. She left it exposed just long enough to give him a proper visual, and then promptly pulled her shirt back over the racy lingerie, heading out the door and into the corridor.

Blast that girl. Snape was grateful that his usual wardrobe consisted of loose robes, because otherwise he'd have to teach the first class of the day while seated behind his desk. He'd have to work extra hard that day not to think of it too much, at risk of being constantly distracted. For the most part, he was able to stay focused on the task at hand, to stay on top of his students and keep his usual intimidating stance. But every now and then, he'd catch his mind wandering.

That purple on the corset that was currently confining her chest, was it the same shade as that thong, the one she had worn in class that day so long ago? The one that had ended in him spanking her?

Damn her.

This Friday was dragging on, his classes seeming to be agonizingly slow as he willed them to go by just a tick faster. All he wanted now, was to have Cassie in his rooms, in his bed, in his hands. He didn't know if he'd even have the restraint to give her the potion he'd made, or if he'd just start to ravish her as soon as they were alone, pull apart her legs and drive his stiff rod into her, over and over until they were both shaking and gasping for breath...

He was in detention now, sitting at his desk, pretending to grade papers as the group of students in front of him chopped huntsman spiders and yarrow plants for their punishments. There were two Hufflepuff third years, who had this detention set up nearly a week ago, along with the gaggle of Slytherins that had given Cassie grief over Charlie's sing-o-gram earlier that day. Snape glared at them, as if somehow their being there was delaying his time with her, as if their inefficient mincing was making the time go slower than usual. He considered letting them all go early, but there was no point to it. They would be let go at nine o'clock sharp, and she would be there shortly after. Letting them go before the agreed upon times would only make him seem soft. And right now, he was anything but.

Finally, it was nine. He barked for them all to leave, and they did so rather willingly. Not caring that many of them hadn't finished chopping their assigned ingredients, he cleaned up rather quickly, and with a wave of his wand, the spiders and blooms flew neatly into their respective containers.

"Hi," he heard from the doorway, and there she was, standing in his classroom at last, free to be his for the night. "Are you done?"

"I'm all yours," he said, and then he paused for a moment, pulling Quirrell's bracelet from his pocket to give it a glance. Noting that nothing alarming was emanating from it, he stuffed it back into his robes hastily.

"Good," she said, a small smile playing at her lips, and she crossed over to him, firmly planting her lips to his, stirring something quite animalistic within him. He briefly considered taking her right then on his desk, something they had done numerous times, but he abstained.

"Please tell me you're still wearing that lovely ensemble underneath your uniform," he said, taking her hand in his, leading her through his office and into his quarters.

"Oh, so you haven't forgotten about it?" she asked, giving his hand a squeeze.

"How could I forget that wicked little display you gave me this morning?" he purred, and as they entered his living area, he pulled her to him, taking in the scent of her hair as he snatched the school robes from her frame, letting them fall to the floor in a heap. "I could think of little else."

"Then it did what I intended," she said, giggling as he continued to undress her. He was taking his time, carefully undoing the buttons on her shirt, rather than ripping it apart and sending them flying like he was accustomed to doing so frequently. It was like he was opening a gift, revealing the coveted lingerie underneath. It looked just as divine on her form as it had that morning, the black and purple matching precisely what he had been picturing in his tortured mind all day.

Next, he moved to rid her of her skirt, reaching around her backside for the zipper, and he noticed that she was flushing on her chest and cheeks, something that was always a bit captivating to him. "Are you flustered?" he asked her lightly. "Am I not moving fast enough for you?"

She closed her eyes he slowly opened up the zipper and pulled down the skirt, intentionally brushing her skin with his hand as he went. The Slytherin garment went to the floor and she eagerly stepped out of it. "What did you say you had for me, Severus?" she asked, taking a deep breath as his hand went to grip her naked butt cheek now, the tips of his fingers nearly digging into the soft skin.

"Risveglentine," he muttered in her ear, the exotic name likely not sounding familiar to the girl, as it was something banned from being taught in the magical school. "It's an elixir that will significantly heighten your...erotic senses." He hoped it would be as tantalizing as he had imagined when he was mixing it for her, the delicate combination of rare blooms and pheromones from rare, far away species a very interesting brew for him indeed.

She opened her eyes then, looking a bit distracted, not the response he had intended. "Oh, that sounds alluring," she said, and then she was biting her lower lip again. "And a bit intimidating."

"You seem unsure," he said, searching her eyes. He wanted her to be certain, not pressured into anything just because he had made it for her.

"Will you take some with me?"

"I would, but one of us to has to be of sound mind in case - " he started.

"In case Quirrell," she muttered, finishing his thought. "I don't know Severus, what if you need my help?"

"I don't want you to worry about that tonight," he told her, and he meant it. She had done so much for him over the last few months, it was the least he could do for her, to offer this small chance for respite. He watched her as she thought it over, her gorgeous face screwed up in reflection, and he could tell the exact moment that she made up her mind, because she softened, looked peaceful all of a sudden.

"So there's a chance I'm going to be all revved up, and you're just going to have to leave me here all alone? That sounds cruel," she teased.

"I suppose there is," he replied. "You're just going to have to trust that I'll return to take care of you." She was giggling, seemingly back to her normal demeanor then. He went to his bedroom, and pulled the small vial of blood red liquid from his nightstand. Cassie eyed it with a bit of apprehension, but when Snape pulled the cork off and placed it gingerly to her lips, she drank it without hesitation.

The power of the draught seemed to hit her almost instantaneously. He could tell that she was trying to restrain herself at first as she sat next to him on the loveseat and he was languidly feeding her chocolate covered strawberries. She was immensely enjoying the the taste of the dessert on her tongue, that much he was certain, as the potion was also intensifying those senses as well. But the longer he observed her, the more he noticed that she was fidgeting in her spot, crossing and uncrossing her legs as if she was trying to relieve some sort of pressure. And then all at once, she took the plate of fruit from his hands, tossing it onto the coffee table, and directed his palms to her breasts.

"I need you to touch me," she gasped, her eyes wide and intense, and then she was on him, her hands roughly gripping his hair, her tongue pressing into his mouth and grappling with his. He was feeling for the ties on her corset, wanting to release her body from its confines and see her nakedness in all its glory once again, when he stopped himself. This wasn't the point of his Valentine's gift, to get her all worked up and then pound away in a few short minutes. He wanted to make a night of it, enjoy themselves. So he slowly forced himself to stand, even with the fuddled girl still pawing at him, and tried to make his way to the bedroom with her in tow.

"Cassie," he croaked, turning his head to break his mouth away from hers for a moment, and she kept attacking him, now suckling on his neck. He was a stupid, stupid man. There was no way he'd be able to resist her like this. "Cass, let's just slow down a minute."

"Why?" she panted. They had made it to the bedroom, were standing in front of the bed, but now she was dropping to her knees, and oh, how he loved it when she did that, but he still reached down for her, grabbed her by the upper arms and made her stand back up.

"While I appreciate your enthusiasm," he said with a smirk, but she didn't look amused as he slowly backed her up towards his bed; rather, she looked a bit crazed, like if he didn't continue to touch her, she might just curse him, "I was hoping that this night would be a bit more sensual, considering that it's our first Valentine's."

"You feed me that elixir, and then you tell me to slow down," she said, her voice gravelly with need, "I don't think _sensual_ is the word for it. I think sadistic is more like it!" He cocked an eyebrow at her, amused at her indignation, and then pushed her down roughly onto the bed, crawling over her, catching her wrists in his hands and pinning her arms above her head.

"If you're going to be rude about the whole thing, girl," he said with an air of authority, nipping at her earlobe as she writhed beneath him, trying to generate some contact between them, "Maybe I won't be as generous as I was planning. I'll just have my way with you now."

"Please do," she panted. He pressed a knee between her legs, making her moan loudly just with that contact. In response, he grabbed his wand from beside the bed, waving it softly, and a satiny, white ribbon spurted from the end, starting to neatly wrap itself around the dainty wrists that were still in his grip.

"No, I don't think I will," he drawled as the ribbon continued to bind her hands together above her head, "because you want it so much." He pulled on the soft binds, making sure they were taut enough that she couldn't just shimmy free, and then started to attach the end of it to his headboard.

"Severus," she said, eyeing him warily, partially bound now. The color on her cheeks deepened as she stared at him, although he wasn't sure if the look she was giving him was out of pure anger or out of fascination just then, "you're being downright malicious now."

"I beg to differ," he replied coolly. He then pointed his wand at the her side, and her corset suddenly popped open, and he wasted no time in pulling the stiff piece of clothing off of her. It was a mouthwatering garment, and the idea of it had tormented him all day. But now that he had her in his bed, he wanted her completely exposed to him. "Rather, I feel that I only have your best interest in mind, my dear."

Her responsiveness to his attentions were absolutely delectable. Every small caress, every hint of his warm breath on her skin made her moan. He spent time exploring every inch of her with his fingers, his tongue, his lips. When she was trembling so hard that she was nearly unable to speak, he finally placed a hand between her legs, his curiosity getting the better of him, and he found that she was absolutely saturated, her juices having made a large pool on the sheets underneath her. He had told himself that he wouldn't make love to her until much later in the night, that he would save that act after he had pleasured her in a number of other ways first, but as she requested it of him over and over in that breathy, sweltering way, he gave in much earlier than he had anticipated. But he could hardly be disappointed in himself as he drove his aching cock into her, sending waves of pleasure through both of them, making her scream to the heavens. She was so tight, so warm, so inviting. He'd never get enough.

He was pleased to find that the powers of his brew didn't wear off even after her first explosive orgasm. So he continued with his ministrations, this time conjuring a sleek black blindfold to cover her eyes with, and a feather to create new sensations with. After their second round, he used hot candle wax, dripping it on her skin, careful to stay away from areas that would be much too sensitive in her heightened state. They went well into the night, and then into the early morning, and only when Snape was sure that he was going to collapse from sheer exhaustion and his beloved looked the same, did he finally pull her into his arms and nestle her onto his chest so they could both get at least a few hours of rest before having to start the next day.

At the very least, he knew he had given her a night of distraction from all of the aggravations that continued to come her way, that would surely continue to amplify and bombard them both. That was why he had kept the steamy night's activities going strong, trying to keep her in the moment, even when he noticed the spellbound bracelet indicating that Quirrell had once again left the premises, and was likely up to something sinister.


	21. The Reunion

As the term went on, Cassie grew increasingly aggravated that Ron, Harry and Hermione were continuing to avoid her, as well as be rude to her during the few interactions they shared. She was well aware that it had something to do with the fact that they weren't fond of Snape, and they knew she spent time with him, but nonetheless, she wasn't liking that her relationship with the youngest Weasley son had been impacted. They had endured their share of sibling-like spats over the years, no doubt, but nothing to this degree.

One night while in the Slytherin common room, she overheard Draco laughing and telling Crabbe about Ron's injured hand, and she went straightaway to check on him. He hadn't flat out ignored her when she entered the hospital wing, but he was rather coarse, insisting that a dog had bit him, and then calling her out for not getting back together with Charlie. She left after only a few minutes, because the stubborn preteen was glaring at her and unwilling to give her any truth as to what actually happened to his immensely swollen appendage. Before she had stepped over the threshold, he had asked her if she was going to go and see Snape, once again adding that she shouldn't trust him.

"Why, Ron? Why shouldn't I?" she had pressed. But he fell silent then. It really was vexing.

At least her rocky relationship with the first year hadn't influenced her harmony with the other Weasleys. Fred and George were always up for a laugh, which Cassie always welcomed unless it was something that would lead to detention. Percy, while his usual prude self when they crossed paths, didn't seem to hold it against her that she had rejected his older brother, remaining polite with her.

"Mother is rather disappointed, of course," Percy had told her when the subject came up one afternoon, when they were on the grounds together. "She was hoping you two would have repaired everything by now."

"Oh," Cassie replied, feeling a bit dejected, because she never wanted to disappoint Molly. "Well, sometimes, things just don't work out, you know."

"Yes, that's what I told her. She's asked me several times if it's because you're dating someone else, but I told her it's really not anyone else's business," Percy said matter-of-factually.

"No, it's not," Cassie muttered quietly.

"But either way, it seems Mother and Father are preparing for you to stay with us at the Burrow, if you'd like."

The statement was a bit jarring, because with everything that had been going on, Cassie hadn't even thought of telling the Weasleys that she wasn't planning on staying with them after graduation. She felt selfish that she hadn't, because of course Molly and Arthur would only be thinking of her well-being even after she had rejected Charlie. "Oh, Percy, that's very kind of them, but I've made other arrangements," she told him quickly.

"You're not staying with the Malfoys again, are you?" Percy asked, giving her a quizzical look. They were down by the Black Lake now, and there were students everywhere enjoying the fresh spring air and being out of the castle. "Because none of us _really_ care that you and Charlie aren't getting back together. You can just stay in Ginny's room again."

Cassie felt a bit uncomfortable then, because there was no way in the world she was going to tell Percy, of all people, that her intention was to move to Cokeworth and into Snape's home on Spinner's End. At least, not until she was properly graduated, and the professor's job wouldn't be at stake when their relationship was out in the open.

"No, I'm not staying with the Malfoys," she said. "Just with a friend. But I'll be sure to come out for lots of visits this summer."

The conversation left her feeling whimsical and looking forward to living under the same roof as Snape. It had her picturing mornings of having tea, and her making breakfast for him, and the two of them spending countless hours in front of his fireplace, not unlike they'd done so many times in his dungeon apartments. But even as those quaint little images flashed through her mind, she started to poke holes in them with doubt that her life could ever be that simple.

But worries of the future and fantasies of domestic life aside, life at Hogwarts continued. Cassie and Snape were in an endless loop of patrolling and anticipating for the next move to be made, as they both knew it would only be a matter of time, for both the Ministry and Quirrell alike. And on the Monday of the week of exams, they were proven right.

Cassie had finally received it, the letter from Bellatrix that told her how to respond. It had started out like the others, this one reminiscing about a particular memory of the two of them feeding bread crumbs to the peacocks at Malfoy Manor, and then it spelled out very specific, cryptic instructions.

' _If you can manage to sneak away and get to Hogsmeade, tonight, leave your letter under the front door of the Shrieking Shack. I have a collaborator, a friend, really, that will pick it up early in the morning before someone discovers it. It would mean the world to hear from you, lamb. I beg you, do not disappoint me.'_

"Do they really think I'm that foolish?" Cassie spat, having looked over the letter for the third time, tossing it onto Dumbledore's desk as she grimaced in disgust. "That I'd just waltz into Hogsmeade in the middle of the night and into the Ministry's waiting arms?"

"Apparently so," Snape replied dully. He was seated, his arms folded neatly over his chest, but he looked just as abhorred as Cassie felt right then.

"So what then?" she said, running her hands through her hair, feeling absolutely drained. She had gotten little sleep in the last week, as she had been helping Snape tail Quirrel all through the nights, and had been trying to study for the end of year assessments every chance she had gotten. She didn't need this now, not when the NEWTs were coming up soon after. Not that dealing with it at any point would be ideal. "Obviously I'm not going to go. What happens then?"

"I suggest you focus on your exams," Dumbledore said lightly, "as there is nothing further we can do as of now."

"So we're just reacting to whatever it is Fudge does next," she said, shaking her head. "I'm not doing what they're expecting, or hoping. So I just sit here, and wait for him to do something else, but more extreme?"

"What do you propose that you do instead?" the Headmaster asked her, and she took a moment to compose herself. She hated the way he chastised her, with his mask of serenity.

"I don't know! Call him out, expose him for even trying this shit!" she spat.

"How do you think that would go, Cassie?" came Snape to Dumbledore's defense, not that she was surprised in the least bit. She shot him a glare, but let him speak, because by now, she knew that he was able to see things a lot more rationally than she was in these heated situations. "You try to bring to the light what he's attempted to do, but when he denies it, who will the rest of the Ministry believe? Who will the public believe?"

Snape was right, of course. She didn't tell him that, but she knew she didn't have to. They left Dumbledore's office not long after, as there was no point in discussing the topic any further at the moment. Snape tried to coax her into going back to his apartments to rest before she had her first exams of the day, but she had a lot negative energy to burn off now, and she took to pacing in front of the third floor corridor, almost willing Quirrell to try something right then. She would have loved to shove the Potions Master up against the wall, push her hands under his robes, and have her way with him, as that was an easy way to get her mind off of all the things that were making her feel like a lunatic lately. But the professor had a room full of second years to assess, so she was on her own.

Focusing on her exams that day was absolute hell. She was lucky that the practical parts came naturally to her, as when it came time for the written parts, her brain was not cooperating. When she was done with the last one, which was Transfiguration, she burst out of the room, disgusted with herself and the entire situation.

"I can't even focus enough to take my tests!" she said miserably when she was alone with Snape later that night. "It's not fair!"

"You'll do just fine, Cassie," he said, trying to reassure her, interrupting the pacing in front of his dining room table by taking her hands in his and pulling her to him. "It's your NEWTs that matter, anyway." He was right again, naturally. The standardized tests would be taking place next week, she would just have to get her brain put back together by then. She was trying to calm herself by repeating this fact as she nuzzled her face into his chest, inhaling his familiar masculine scent. But all she could think of was what the Ministry was doing, that they were expecting her in Hogsmeade at any moment now, with a letter for Bellatrix Lestrange in hand. That one piece of incriminating evidence they could use to deny her the career path she had been dreaming of for as long as she could remember, or perhaps lock her up and throw away the key.

"How many Aurors do you think they have waiting for me?" she asked quietly.

"What?"

"How many do you think they sent to subdue me?" she asked, forcing a smile as she looked up at him, pretending to make light of the situation even as a tear fell down her cheek.

"All of them, knowing Fudge."

A sound came out of her, a mix between laughter and a sob, and Snape bent down to place a tender, chaste kiss on her lips. He insisted that she needed a proper night's rest, especially considering that her Potions exam was the next morning, and convinced her to drink a sleeping draught after a small argument about Potter and Quirrell and the Stone. But she was sleeping in a matter of minutes, something her mind and her body desperately needed.

The next morning, Cassie awoke feeling somewhat refreshed, but as soon as the realization that the Ministry had been waiting for her at Hogsmeade the night before came rushing back, she felt restless. Nevertheless, she made it through her exams that day, finding some amusement in the fact that three of her Potions classmates were crying during their practical, that the man she loved most in the world still made near-functioning adults blubber because he was callous.

How nice it must be, to worry about something so trivial as a professor being mean or looking at you cross. Her amusement quickly turned to jealousy, and she wanted to tell them that they ought to take a walk in her shoes for a moment, and worry about things like the government trying to create reasons to lock you away, or prophecies about genocide, or trying to keep deceptive teachers from killing the Boy Who Lived, all while maintaining good grades. Then they'd have proper reasons to weep.

The week went on, and with every passing moment, Cassie was expecting Fudge, and Aurors, and perhaps even her mother in chains to come bursting through the door at any time. But she finished her exams without anything of the sort happening, and was able to go outside with Alpit and Juniper when they were officially free to enjoy the sunshine.

"No more exams! No more classes!" Alpit said, stretching his arms above his head as they headed out onto the grounds. It seemed the rest of the student body had the same idea, and the three of them were trying to find an empty tree to sit by.

"Except for our NEWTs," Juniper pointed out, and Alpit groaned.

"June, you have to go and ruin everything, don't you?" the Hufflepuff groaned. "Just enjoy these next few days off, will you?"

"Next few days?" June said, sounding appalled at the suggestion. "I'm taking the afternoon off, Al, but we have to get back to studying straight away!"

"Nonsense, June! What are you going to cram into your head in that amount of time?" Al argued. "Cass, what are you going to do? Study, like this crazy Ravenclaw over here?"

But Cassie was barely listening, because she saw that Snape was crossing the grounds towards the trio, and at a rather hurried pace, his black cloak billowing out behind him. She locked eyes with him, and her heart began to race in anticipation, because he looked somber.

"Oh, God, he's come to tell me I've failed!" Juniper exclaimed, but Cassie shushed her irritably. She couldn't be bothered with these stupid things, not now.

"Professor," she said as he approached, and the two seventh years beside her took a step back as he rushed into their vicinity.

"Miss Black," he said curtly, giving her a slight nod. "Professor Dumbledore requests your presence immediately."

Cassie didn't bother to look back at her two companions. It didn't matter if they were confused, staring at her with their mouths open as she and Snape made their way quickly back towards the castle. "What is it?" she whispered.

"Fudge has requested an urgent meeting with you and Dumbledore," he replied, and Cassie started gritting her teeth. "You two are leaving for London as soon as possible." He led her to the Headmaster's office, a place she felt she was spending far too much time in as of late, but before they started to ascend the staircase, he stopped short.

"I regret that I must stay here, to keep an eye on things," he said in a hushed tone, his black eyes flitting around, checking to see that no one else was in the surrounding corridor that might see them, and then he reached for her hand, giving it what he must have intended to be a reassuring squeeze. Cassie felt like she was going to be sick, even with his tender actions. He must have seen that she was feeling rather demoralized, because he suddenly whispered, "I love you."

Pulled out of her dire state, her eyes moved up to his face to find his. "I love you, too, Severus."

The exchange gave her the motivation that she needed to make it the rest of the way to the Headmaster's office, although she could still feel her heart thudding against her rib cage, even as her gaze fell upon Dumbledore's calm form. "Miss Black," he said in greeting, giving her a tiny nod, his twinkling blue eyes looking pastoral, the calm before a storm.

"Headmaster," Cassie managed to reply. The older wizard explained that they were granted access to the Ministry by Floo Network, that they would be leaving momentarily. As she came to stand next to him in front of his grand fireplace, she turned to look at Snape one last time, the image of him watching her giving her one last boost of courage as she stepped into the emerald flames and was pulled away from him.

This time, as she stepped into the atrium of the Ministry of Magic, she felt the irony that she was getting so familiar with it that she knew right where the security desk was, that she recognized Eric without a doubt, knew the necessary protocols as he checked in her wand. But the growing intimacy with the government building was not something she was exactly welcoming as of late. As she followed Dumbledore through the crowd of workers, instantly recognizing that they were on the path to the same dungeon courtroom that she had been in the last time around, she looked for the friendly face of Arthur Weasley. Even if she just glanced upon him, she thought she might feel a bit better, but he was nowhere to be found. Likely, he had no idea that this was even taking place, or he'd be fighting to be by her side.

Even though Dumbledore greatly aggravated her at times, she would have readily admitted that she was incredibly pleased to have him with her as she walked through the building. For when you were making your way through a congregation of witches and wizards, not one of them would pay attention to Albus Dumbledore's companion, because you would be far less interesting than him. She almost felt invisible, which was a welcome feeling. Unfortunately, that came to an abrupt halt as soon as they entered the courtroom, for she was instructed to sit in the same chair as last time, with the chains poised to restrain her. The group of Wizengamot members in their plum robes and snooty expressions were looking down upon her yet again, very much making it feel like she was entering a recurring nightmare.

She spotted Lucius Malfoy seated near the back of the benches, and it took her by surprise for a moment, but then a nasty feeling started to wash over her as she observed him. He had the familiar smug, pleased look on his face as his silver eyes gazed upon her, his hands folded neatly on the snake staff that he liked to keep with him. In that moment, she felt like she was certain of what he was doing. He was fluffing his feathers, convinced that he had won, somehow, and trying to communicate that he was in charge now. But Cassie didn't need this extravagant display, this courtroom full of Ministry officials to know that he had likely pulled the strings to get her to this point. Like she had suspected far too late in the game, her Christmas Eve visit to the Manor had been a test, and she had failed, miserably. And now he was trying to get a leg up on her, show her that his political ties were far too powerful to be trifled with, that if she ever attempted to a point finger at him, she would be the one who would pay the price.

"Cornelius," came Dumbledore's voice, and Cassie had to hide a smirk, because she knew it would highly perturb the Minister that the Headmaster dared to address him first, and without the formalities, in a setting like this. "To what do Miss Black and I owe this pleasure, and on such a busy day like today? My students at Hogwarts have only just finished their end of year exams this afternoon."

"Dumbledore," Fudge said through clenched teeth, peering down at the Headmaster from up high, his beady eyes squinting in anger, "I highly suggest that you have a seat in the benches, as this matter concerns the accused, and not you."

"Seeming as you have not yet spoken of what you are accusing my student of having done, I think it is quite appropriate to remain at her side," Dumbledore replied, and he placed a calm hand on Cassie's shoulder. Murmuring started among the plum robes. Cassie was quickly losing patience. She glanced around the room, noting that there seemed to be a larger number of unknown faces this time, likely Aurors she had never met, as they seemed to be strategically and evenly spaced throughout the chamber. Moody was there, but no Tonks to offer her silent support or a warm smile. Cassie hoped she hadn't been banned from the room for losing her temper.

"Fine," Fudge snapped. "I don't feel the need to waste anyone else's time further. The reason she is here, Dumbledore, is because _your student_ , seems to have been keeping a rather large, very dangerous secret, something you ought to know!"

"Really?" Dumbledore said, giving her shoulder a squeeze, and she knew that was him telling her to remain quiet for the time being. "Please, Cornelius, enlighten me. I'm sure all of us are curious now." There was more murmuring, and when it fell silent, the Minister of Magic continued.

"Our intelligence informs me, Dumbledore, that Cassiopeia Black has been receiving communications from her mother, _in Azkaban!_ " and he paused for dramatic effect. There was more hissing, whispering, as if the members of the Wizengamot didn't already know what was about to happen. Perhaps they didn't, and Fudge had wanted their genuine surprise for dramatic purposes. "And numerous letters, Dumbledore, not just one!"

"That is a crime?" Dumbledore asked, looking quite puzzled, "To receive letters?"

"To hide something of that nature, Dumbledore, is surely perilous! The girl cannot be trusted to have such dark influences in her life, and to keep it a secret! Does it not worry you?" Fudge said, and then he turned to the side, looking at the rest of the courtroom, whose members were looking quite panicked. "Does it not worry all of you?"

"Not at all," Dumbledore said then, and he had nonchalantly popped a lemon drop that he had pulled from his robes into his mouth, "As _she_ has not kept it a secret. She has been showing the letters to her Head of House, and to me, the entire time."

If the courtroom was loud between their bantering, it was boisterous now; apparently, the Wizengamot members had not been anticipating this revelation at all. Fudge looked absolutely revolted at Dumbledore's words, and once again, Cassie was having to keep from cracking a smile as she observed the chaos around her. She glanced back up at Lucius, who was not looking nearly as pompous as he had at the beginning, his eyes narrowed to slits as he glared down at her.

Cassie looked up in surprise as she felt Dumbledore's hand around her arm then, and he was nodding his head, intending for her to get up. She scrambled out of the chair quickly, and then she nearly gasped like everyone else in the room as Dumbledore smoothly plopped himself into the chained chair, looking like he was settling himself into the comfiest piece of furniture he had ever discovered. Cassie was left to stand awkwardly by her Headmaster's side as Ministry officials started to stand, point, yell.

"So if keeping secrets is what we're putting on trial," Dumbledore said, his usual soft voice now magically booming over the overreacting group, "Then by all means, let's begin."

"Dumbledore, this is madness!" one of the Wizengamot witches said shrilly, but his collected demeanor was starting to slip a bit.

"For once, I agree with one of you," he said smoothly, openly staring up at the plum-robed people above him now. "Now, I find it rather rude of me, but I do find it in all our best interests to remind you, that I am a very busy individual. Are you going to put me on trial for keeping Miss Black's letters a secret, or not?"

Fudge was grimacing, his mouth opening, and closing, and opening again, and then he finally managed to speak. "No, Dumbledore, that won't be necessary!"

"Alright, then," Dumbledore said, standing up, and brushing off the bottom of his robes. "Then my parting words will be this, ladies and gentlemen of the Wizengamot: you may be trying to place blame on Miss Black, for fears that you cannot reasonably explain. But I must also remind you, that in order for Bellatrix Lestrange to send those letters in the first place, someone among you had to have helped her - "

"Dumbledore! That is absolutely ludicrous!" Fudge was bellowing, but Dumbledore kept speaking, having won the attention of the rest of the room now.

"- Helped her, and planned this entire thing, for reasons I will leave all of you to deduce." In the anarchy that ensued, Dumbledore pointed his wand to his throat, so that the volume of his voice reduced to a normal level again, and then he turned to Cassie. "Let's head back, shall we?"

Never in her young life had she been so thankful to have Dumbledore on her side. They were out the door of the chamber, and she was certain that they would just be able to leave, when suddenly, a figure stepped in front of them.

"Cassie," hissed Lucius Malfoy, and she was a little impressed that he was daring enough to stop Dumbledore in his path, be this blatant with his true intentions. "Don't think that this is over, just because your Headmaster was here to save your little hide!"

"Mister Malfoy," Dumbledore said in a polite tone, "I suggest that you step aside, as I intend to get Miss Black back to Hogwarts in a timely manner."

"Oh, I won't keep her long, Dumbledore," Lucius said, looking past him and turning to glare at Cassie again. She returned his intensity as she looked at him, because now she knew he was behind all of this, his inability to control himself right now confirming it.

"Was all of this just to make sure you wouldn't have an Auror in the family, Uncle?" she asked quietly. "Because you're afraid I'd turn you in once I had some pull with the Ministry?"

"I'm not afraid," he spat at her. "The Minister would never believe _you_ over me."

"Yes, I think you've proved that, haven't you?" Cassie said, and she pushed past him, leaving him to stand there in his fury, because Dumbledore started walking again. They made their way to the row of fireplaces, and soon they were in back in Dumbledore's office. Cassie knew she had some reason to feel celebratory, because she had gotten out of that situation without a blemish, but she had to believe her disconcerted uncle. This wasn't over.

Cassie was about to speak with Dumbledore, perhaps pick his brain on what he thought might happen next, but he merely said, "Stay here, will you, Cassiopeia?" while looking rather distracted, and was heading towards the door. She called after him, asking what was wrong, but he didn't answer, leaving her alone in the large oval room.

She had half a mind to just leave, because now all she wanted to do was find Snape, tell him what had happened, lie in his arms for a bit and then go to sleep. But she knew she owed the Headmaster more respect than that, with everything he had done for her that day. So she stayed in the office like he had told her to do, sitting there, waiting for some unknown reason and for an unknown amount of time. She was in there for what seemed like only an hour, but it had been a rather trying day, and she was growing quite sleepy as she sat in the chair in front of Dumbledore's desk. The only sounds around her were Fawkes preening his feathers, and the tick of a grandfather clock that stood in the corner, and she was being lulled to sleep in her solitude.

She startled awake when Fawkes squawked a tiny bit, and she looked around. The office looked unchanged, and she figured she had dozed off for only a minute or two. A bit miffed that perhaps Dumbledore had forgotten about her and there was no good reason for her to be waiting in there still, she stood from the chair and turned, intending to leave. Fawkes let out a blaring screech suddenly, and Cassie gasped at the unexpected noise; all at once, the reason for the bird's alarm was apparent as the sight of a translucent, albeit familiar humanoid shape was in front of her. She stumbled back a few steps, but the phantom with serpent-like features rushed at her, and she felt overtaken, disoriented. But even in her sudden engulfed state, it didn't take more than a few seconds for her to realize who had entered her psyche.

_"Cassiopeia,"_ her father's high voice hissed, although she was hearing him in her mind, rather than perceiving him with her ears, _"You've been rather disappointing!"_

"Good!" she wheezed, clutching at her throat, because she felt like she was choking and drowning at the same time, doubling over as she tried to rid herself of the intruder.

_"All year, I've been attempting to alienate you from corrupting influences, but it seems you've spent many years surrounding yourself with them on purpose. Dumbledore has done a number on you."_ She stopped clawing at her neck, because she knew it wasn't a true physical response; even in his weakened, incorporeal state, he was using his masterful skills of Legilimens to overtake her. She had to get control of her mind, push him out, like she had been practicing for. _"I've seen enough of your memories to know that you_ enjoy _being around mudbloods and blood traitors...if I didn't know any better, I'd say that you've been brainwashed!"_

"On the contrary," she said, closing her eyes, taking a deep breath, and she winced as he started to rifle through her memories as he had done in her sleep many months ago, "I've been lucky enough to escape _your_ influences, Father."

_"Such a pity. It would have been so much easier to have you get the Stone for me, rather than use pathetic, insignificant Quirrell. You could have gotten it for me in a matter of days, rather than wait all year to try!"_

"I never would have done it!" she gasped.

_"Yes, it seems that you're convinced of that,"_ Voldemort responded, and she cried out as he continued to rip through her mind like it was nothing, like the deepest corners of her mind were ripe for the picking. She was absolutely flabbergasted that he was able to bring forth this much power, maintain this much hold on her in his depleted state. But she knew he was desperate now, without a host, with no other choice but to possess her or perish. _"But no matter. Once I've gotten control of you, we'll do great things together!"_

But the fear of him fully taking hold of her, of using her body and her powers for his use was what gave Cassie the final push. With one decisive, all-consuming burst of energy, she forced all of her effort into one deafening collision, envisioning her spirit as a one room house, one that would not allow this infiltrator inside any longer. She propelled him out with so much force that she was blasted backwards from the struggle, slamming into Dumbledore's desk as the crystalline form of Lord Voldemort was ripped from her being. It rushed to the fireplace with a deafening roar in an attempt to escape.

Cassie was sure that she saw the shadow of her father disappear when it entered the hearth, but in a panic to be absolutely sure, she rushed towards it on her hands and knees, and she didn't notice the rattled looking Potions Master that was standing near the door of the office.

"Cassie!" he shouted, hurrying towards her, and she was looking up into the stack now, straining to see if there was any sign of the Dark Lord.

"Is he gone?" she asked him, her voice shaking, and he squatted down, wrapping his arms around her torso. "Is he gone?" she repeated, now breaking down into sobs.

"I think so," he told her, but sounding quite unsure of himself. "Cassie, you're alright? Are you okay?"

"I don't know," she answered him, shaking her head. They were both on the floor of the office, a tangle of limbs as they held each other. Snape had just come from the hospital wing, had just helped Dumbledore get the Potter boy back to safety after he had been attacked by Quirrell and Lord Voldemort, and now witnessed this.

After several shaky, tear filled minutes, Snape helped Cassie to her feet. She had wanted to just go back to his apartments, but he knew it would be better to go to the hospital wing, as it would be likely that Dumbledore would want to question her on what had just taken place. But one thing was for certain: no matter what Poppy said, Snape was going to insist on privacy curtains, and he wasn't going to leave her side for anything, not that night.


	22. Exams and Celebration

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovely readers! :)  
> Just a heads up, this is the last chapter of Book One. The next chapter will be posted under Blood Ties and Betrayal: Book Two, under the same series. The story will continue, it might take a few extra days because I have a few back to back shifts coming up, but it shouldn't be too long!

Cassie, along with the rest of the school, seemed to hold her breath for the next several days as Harry Potter lay unconscious in the hospital wing. It was all anyone could seem to talk about, what happened with Quirrell and the Sorcerer's Stone, not that she could blame them. Madam Pomfrey was quite busy fussing over Harry, having to take care of him and shoo off any students trying to sneak a look at him. Cassie was thankful, at least, that she only spent the first night in the infirmary, and then was released the next morning after speaking with Dumbledore. She was forced to relive what had happened, and in excruciating detail, because the Headmaster understandably wanted to know the specifics. But afterwards, she sought solace in Snape's apartments, crawling into his bed and curling up under the heavy blankets, willing time to stop she could just stay under them for the time being.

The fact that she hadn't figured out that her father had been behind the entire thing was eating away at her, making her feel completely shortsighted. It was a conversation that she had with Snape over and over, no matter how many times he tried to ease her mind, trying to remind her that she had to get prepared to sit for her NEWTs in a few short days. But her traumatized mind was like a revolving door, thinking about poor Harry, and her own inadequacies, and the fact that the whole year could have ended much, much worse if she hadn't been able to thrust Lord Voldemort from her when he had nearly succeeded in possessing her.

Then on the third afternoon since Quirrell had gone after the Stone, Cassie finally ventured out into the corridors, and against Snape's advice. She was seeking an answer to a question he had told her it was fruitless to ask, that if the person she had wanted to see had wanted her to know, he would have told her already. Regardless, she left the tranquility of Snape's bedroom when he had gone to submit exam grades, and made her way to Dumbledore's office alone.

When she got there, it was like the Headmaster had been expecting her. He was seated, his wrinkled hands folded neatly on the desk in front of him as he watched her walking towards him. The office, which she had been in so many times in the past school year, was tainted to her now, polluted with the memory of so recently interacting with the specter of her father. Without even thinking about it, she found that she was nervously watching the fireplace, as if somehow he would reappear there suddenly and coming rushing at her once again. It made her hesitate before sitting down in front of Dumbledore's desk, as if she would feel more comfortable standing in case she needed to flee.

"Miss Black," he said warmly, "Good to see you out and about. How are you feeling?"

"I've been better, Headmaster," she said truthfully. She realized that she probably looked like a mess, as she hadn't bothered to brush her hair or glance in the mirror before coming. In fact, she wasn't even sure what she was wearing until she was thinking about it just then, and glanced down to check in a momentary panic; at least she was in a t-shirt and her own set of pajama pants, and hadn't wandered to the Headmaster's office in one of Snape's nightshirts in her morose state. That might have been hard to explain away.

"Yes, by observing you now, it seems you could benefit from a bit more rest, so I will spare you from further pleasantries," he said then. Cassie smirked slightly at his polite way of telling her she looked like shit. "What can I help you with, Miss Black?"

"I just wanted to ask you something, Headmaster," she said, and then she suddenly felt obscene for even being there, Snape's words in her head as he told her not to ask Dumbledore this inquiry. But she was here, and she had Dumbledore's attention now. So she pressed on.

"Yes, fire away."

"Did you know, that Quirrell was trying to get the Stone for my father?" There it was, out in the open. She felt a bit rude even asking him, after everything he'd done for her lately. But there was that small part of her, that nagging feeling that would never be quieted, no matter how many times Snape reassured her that Dumbledore could be trusted.

"I did not know," he replied lightly, and with little hesitation, "But I had my suspicions." Well, at least he was being honest now. Maybe.

"But you didn't feel the need to enlighten Professor Snape and I, after everything we did to help you?" she asked quietly. She felt surprisingly calm, aware that she would normally be growing quite angry at these revelations. Maybe it was because this was the answer she had been expecting from him, this cleverly deceptive wizard.

"I didn't feel the need to cause unnecessary apprehension, solely based on my hunches," Dumbledore said. Cassie eyed him warily. She knew she should be livid, shouting. But she just felt tired, now.

"Do you realize what could have happened if he had taken me as a host?" she said then. "You would have had a war on your hands, much more quickly than any of you would have ever anticipated. If I had known he was here, trying to get the Stone, I could have been on my guard, or I could have interfered, gotten Quirrell out - "

"Miss Black," Dumbledore said then, his tone a bit more stern, "There are factors that I must consider outside of your circumstances, things much bigger than you are in a position to understand right now. I must ask, yet again, that - "

"I trust you, yes," Cassie said, and then her eyes went back to the fireplace. "So that's your response? That I should shut up and be a good little soldier? Do whatever you ask of me?"

He was silent then for a few moments, and when he spoke again, his inflection had reverted back to gentle, hushed. "I am assuming that it's not what you wish to hear right now, Miss Black, but yes. For the time being, I must ask that you let me see the bigger picture, and when the circumstances are right, I will allow you to see it as well."

They were interrupted, then, when a knock came at the office door, and a hurried looking McGonagall came in without waiting for permission. "Oh, he's awake, Albus!" she said, her hand over her heart as she looked between the two of them with her hand over her heart. If there was obvious tension between Cassie and Dumbledore, McGonagall was too distracted to care. "Potter's awake!"

Dumbledore looked to Cassie briefly, but she nodded, knowing that the discussion was at a stalemate anyway. He left without another word, obviously anxious to speak to the Boy Who Lived, and Cassie and the Head of Gryffindor descended the spiral staircase together.

"Miss Black, why don't we go tell Potter's friends together?" the professor said, and Cassie noticed that there were tears glistening in her eyes. "Of course, we'll let Albus have his time alone with him for now, but we must tell them the good news!"

"Oh, Professor, I don't know, looking like this," Cassie said, brandishing at her disheveled clothing, but McGonagall would have none of it.

"That get up was good enough for the Headmaster, what's the harm in seeing a couple of first years?"

Not really having a good argument for that, Cassie followed the professor to Gryffindor tower. After pulling Ron, Hermione, and Neville out into the corridor, Cassie watched as McGonagall told them the wonderful news, that Harry was fine and was stirring, that they wouldn't be able to see him just yet but in good time, they'd all be reunited. Cassie lost it when Ron threw his arms around her torso and gave her a tight squeeze, and his ears turned red when he mumbled some apology about giving her a hard time. Never one to be that good at apologies, she heard him spout something about her spending time too much time around the Overgrown Bat. Cassie didn't care if his words weren't eloquent enough. All she cared was that the Weasley boy didn't hate her, and she told him that through her tears.

She needed to study, but she didn't care. The majority of her day was spent out on the grounds with Ron, Hermione, and Neville, sitting around a particularly large tree and reminiscing about the year, fond and unpleasant memories included. Eventually, Fred and George found them, and Percy even joined the group after an hour or so, taking a seat on the grass after reminding them that he was rather important and busy, being a school prefect and all. It was restorative for Cassie, to just sit outside and chat with the group of the Gryffindors, as all of them were quite relaxed now that they knew Harry was awake. For the first time in months, Cassie was starting to feel a pang of mourning, that these were her final days at Hogwarts. She had been so preoccupied this last year with so many things, that she had spent little time ruminating on the fact that she would no longer be within the cover of the grounds, under the protection of the staff that had gotten to know her so well over the years. The hysteria and alienation she felt when out in the wizarding community, that was the world she would be entering upon graduation, in mere days. That new reality was going to be upon her, whether she was ready for it or not.

But this realization, as it washed over Cassie, didn't upset her. Rather, a sense of serenity flowed through her body, and after she parted ways with the younger students in the entrance hall, she found herself wanting to wander through the castle just to see everything one last time. The familiarity the corridors and empty classrooms gave her, were memories she knew she could call upon to ease the pressures and hardships that no doubt would come her way in the future. Knowing that she missed dinner in the Great Hall while on her little trek, she stopped by the kitchens, chatting with the merry house elves and enjoying a turkey sandwich like she had done so many times over the years when she just couldn't tolerate being with the rest of the student body.

Eventually she made her way back to the dungeons, well into the evening, and Snape gave her a quizzical look as she entered his apartments. She started to give him a rundown of her day's activities without him having to ask, but he cut her off as soon as he learned that she had gone to see Dumbledore.

"I warned you not to see him," he said sharply, and she sighed.

"Yes, I remember, Severus."

"You're causing more distractions before your NEWTs, unnecessary worries! And was he upfront with you? Did you learn what you sought after?" he asked, exasperated. Cassie had slowly approached the arm chair he was sitting in, and she bent forward, placing her hands on the arm rests, her face inches from his.

"Not really," she said quietly, "And I don't want to discuss it anymore, not right now." She kissed him, a satisfied hum vibrating through her as her lips connected with his. She knew that distracting herself wasn't going to solve anything, that the harrowing feeling that Dumbledore intended to only treat her as a mindless pawn, a weapon in whatever upcoming conflicts was going to continue to harass her until he showed her otherwise. But for now, on this particular evening, she was going to force it out of her mind and enjoy the feeling of the man she was currently with. It was addicting, the way he reciprocated her advances, especially now that they no longer had the worry of what Quirrell might be doing in the back of their minds. As she slid onto his lap, his arms circled around her, pulling her closer to him. Everything else worrisome melted away right then, like his embrace alone was the cure to all of her ailments, her suffering.

As sad as she might be feeling about almost being done with her school career, she was grateful that she had Snape, that he would be a part of her life even after Hogwarts was not any longer. That thought crossed her mind when they were done with their sexual antics, having ended up in front of the fireplace in the throws of passion. A smile crossed her lips as she nestled herself on top of her raven-haired companion and planted a kiss on his nose.

"What are you thinking of now, you silly thing?" Snape asked her, lovingly stroking her back as he looked at her with bemusement in his eyes.

"I was just thinking of when I move in," she told him. "It's not that far away, is it?"

"Not at all, my dear."

"Are you going to let me redecorate?" she asked then, starting to giggle softly.

"What part of my home displeases you?" he countered, and she started to picture the dark sitting room, its walls lined to the ceiling with books, and the tiny, drab kitchen that contained nothing but the minimum essentials. She had never been in any of the house's bedrooms before, but she couldn't imagine that they were any more embellished with cozy amenities.

"None of it _displeases_ me," she replied. "I'll just be bringing my own things, you know. Adding my own touch a bit."

"There's room in the attic for your belongings," he quipped, and she laughed, pretending that she was going to push herself off of him in their playful banter, but he held onto her tightly.

She rested well that night, and the next day, she spent some time with Juniper and Alpit before the end of year feast. Juniper was adamant that they try to study, but Alpit was having none of it, so much of Cassie's afternoon was spent listening to them argue as she sat with her notes open. She glanced over at them every now and then, enjoying being in the library with the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff more than anything. When it was time for the feast, they headed into the Great Hall together, which was decorated in green and silver to celebrate Slytherin winning the house cup for the seventh year in a row. As Cassie separated from her fellow aspiring Aurors and headed off towards her house table, she glanced up at Snape. She couldn't help but smirk as she observed the pleased look on his features, knowing that despite anything he said about the matter, he was rather proud of his house winning yet again.

As always, the food at the feast was marvelous, and mood in the hall was lively, especially when Harry Potter joined the Gryffindor table. Cassie ignored the deafening complaints of her housemates and rejoiced as Dumbledore awarded the first year Gryffindors their last minute points, and the house cup was taken away from Slytherin, ending their winning streak. Snape looked disappointed, but like he was trying to hide his true feelings. Cassie made it her goal right then, to make him feel better when they were alone later that night. Like she had hoped, it didn't take long to get his mind off of the purloined house cup; all she really had to do was slowly remove her Slytherin uniform in front of him, showcasing the onyx necklace he had gotten her on her nude skin. That visual reminder that she continued to choose him, invariably seemed to stir the Head of Slytherin's passion, and consign every other thought to oblivion.

The next day, the majority of the younger students had left for the summer holidays, having boarded the Hogwarts Express and sped away into the countryside and away from the school. That left only the seventh years in the castle, who were awaiting the start of their NEWTs. They were to have two days of intense testing, which were officiated by members of the Wizarding Examinations Authority, and then they would be graduating.

Cassie was in the entrance hall with the rest of the seventh years that morning, waiting to be let into the Great Hall so their exams could begin. She felt fidgety, her own nerves mixing with the restless energy of the rest of the students around her, but there was something in her own intuition that she couldn't shake, like something was about to happen. She tried to tell herself that it was just tension, years of waiting for this important day coming to a head, but even as she observed Juniper shaking and muttering to herself, reciting memorized recipes to elixirs they had been working on all year, she wasn't all together convinced that the feeling could be explained away that simply.

Then, the doors to the Great Hall started to open with a loud creak, and Professor McGonagall ushered them in with a curt nod. Cassie took a deep breath, following the line of students in. The hall looked immensely different than it normally did, with individual desks set up in rows, instead of the four house tables. Stern, ancient looking witches and wizards lined the room, many of them looking familiar, as they came every year to administer the OWLs and NEWTs. Cassie took a seat at one of the desks, following the actions of her classmates, and they waited for the testing to start. She and the other students were confused, then, when for several silent minutes, nothing seemed to happen.

She looked around the room, and those seated around her were doing the same, looking rather baffled as to why they didn't have test papers in front of them, or why they hadn't been addressed by any of the examiners yet. The ominous feeling that Cassie had started with that morning started to intensify, and she took a breath, hoping that it would cleanse her aura a bit. It didn't.

The creaking of double doors opening again echoed through the mainly silent hall, and all eyes turned to see who had entered now. Cassie's heart dropped, because she instantly recognized some of the faces of the dozen witches and wizards that entered now. They were people she had just seen in the courtroom at the Ministry of Magic; Aurors, and she knew without anyone having to speak that they were there to see her.

Alastor Moody was among them as they filed in, and she was at a complete loss as he broke away from the line, coming straight towards her. A few of the classmates near her gasped as he Moody strode right up to her, and before she knew what she was doing, she stood shakily, thinking that remaining seated was rude.

"Miss Black," he growled, his false eye whirring about the room. For some reason, the fact that it was not currently fixated on her made her feel slightly better, even though she had no clue what was going on.

"Hello," she squeaked, and she didn't know if he had even heard her, it came out so feebly.

"Remain calm," he told her, and she noticed that the Aurors were spacing themselves around the room evenly, making it rather difficult for anyone to try to escape. Cassie swallowed hard. "He's looking for any excuse, and I mean _any._ Don't give him one."

She nodded, having a million questions and not a coherent thought in her head all at once. Moody hadn't given her a name, but he didn't have to. Who he was referring to had entered the Great Hall now, and Cassie had to summon every bit of control she had not to glare at the Minister, in case that would give him enough cause to say that she had threatened him.

"Mad-Eye, back in formation!" Fudge barked, and Moody gave Cassie one last knowing look, before grunting and turning to take his place among the other Aurors. Cassie began to tremble slightly, feeling very much alone now, and she sat back down at her desk, for fear that her knees would buckle.

"What is the meaning of this?" came McGonagall's voice from where the High Table normally stood, and then Cassie willed for the professor for once, to not support her. Moody's warning was foreboding, and Cassie couldn't live with herself if the Deputy Headmistress was caught in the cross hairs of his irrational scheme.

"We are taking the necessary precautions, being that the Minister has risked his safety to come here," came the haughty voice of one of the elderly examiners.

"Safety? Meaning what, exactly?" McGonagall retorted. Students were whispering now. Fudge headed towards the front of the room, and then stood in the spot where Dumbledore's chair normally was during meal times. Cassie wanted to knock him off his feet just then.

"I have taken the time out of my busy schedule, and at risk of my personal security, to come here to remove Cassiopeia Black from the hall," Fudge announced. "The Wizengamot has ruled that in the best interest of the wizarding community, that she shall not be allowed to sit for her NEWTs."

Full blown chattering erupted among the students now, and Cassie closed her eyes, trying to block out the extra stimulation as she tried to follow Moody's advice to stay calm.

"On what grounds?" McGonagall nearly shouted, sounding quite distressed now. Cassie wanted to intervene, to implore her to stop defending her, but she had to get her emotions in check first. It was imperative. If the ground started shaking now, the Aurors would be on her.

"On the grounds that this is a Ministry matter, and that the decision is final!" Fudge declared.

"No, the decision is _not_ final, not until the Headmaster has a say!" McGonagall retorted, and she started to head towards the doors. "This is absolutely ludicrous, the girl has been studying her whole school career for this, for you to say that she cannot sit for her tests is absolutely asinine!"

"And the testing is completed by Ministry officials," another examiner said, stepping forward. "I'm afraid, Deputy Headmistress, that this is out of your hands."

"Be as it may, this is _our_ school!" McGonagall said passionately, "and as she has not done anything to warrant keeping her from taking her exams, then I must insist that you remove your Aurors immediately!"

Cassie opened her eyes now, looking around the room at the building chaos, having felt like she had a better handle on her mental state now. She should hardly be surprised by the Minister's ploy to derail her ambitions to become an Auror at this point, but what she hadn't been expecting was for him to ruin her chances of having _any_ magical career at all. The man really was out to get her, Lucius having apparently done a stellar job at encouraging a negative view of her.

"It's alright, Professor McGonagall," Cassie said, standing back up now. She let her voice come out loud and clear, but in a placid manner. Hopefully, it would be enough to keep Fudge from sicking his minions on her. "If the Minister has decided that I cannot sit for my NEWTs, than I will leave the hall immediately."

"Miss Black!" McGonagall cried, sounding absolutely appalled at her response, "I insist that you sit back down!"

"No, I think the girl is making the rational choice in not resisting," Fudge said then, and he looked rather pompous as his eyes fell on Cassie. It took everything in her not to sneer at him, to maintain an appearance of indifference as he ruined her future in a matter of moments. But she had accepted it now: being an Auror was not in the cards for her.

Two Aurors stepped forward as Cassie slowly moved away from her desk, going on either side of her to escort her from the hall. She kept her eyes fixated on the double doors as she started to walk, knowing she might lose her composure if she locked eyes with anyone. Then suddenly, over the hushed whispers, another voice was heard.

"You can't do this!" Juniper cried out indignantly, standing at her desk. "She's earned the right to sit for the exams, just like the rest of us!"

"Girl, sit down," an examiner commanded swiftly.

"No, I will not!" Juniper replied, and then Alpit stood up.

"Yeah, she's done nothing wrong! What's wrong with you?" he shouted. "She's been studying to be an Auror, just like us! You're a fool not to take her!"

"I will _not!"_ Fudge shouted angrily then, his face turning bright red, and the Aurors beside Cassie stopped walking to watch the scene unfold. "Have someone as dangerous as her working for the Ministry, on the inside where she can do so much damage!"

The room erupted then. Cassie watched as the seventh years around her, of all houses and blood statuses, started to stand and shout, directing their impatience at the Minister and his employees.

"Dangerous!" one Ravenclaw said, "How is she dangerous? She's been one of us since our first year!"

"She's a hell of a lot nicer than half the kids here!" Theodore yelled, and Cassie couldn't help but smile as her fellow tutor defended her.

She picked out Jenour, the Head Girl's voice then, as she directed her statement straight at Fudge. "She might be annoying, but she's the last thing from _dangerous_! God, you're all so _stupid!"_

And then Harrison Babbs, the egotistical, playboy prefect that Cassie had always thought was only looking to get into her pants and thought of little else, bellowed, "If she can't take her NEWTs, none of us will either!"

Her mouth fell open at his words, and she was about to tell him to shut up and not ruin his future too, when she heard all of the seventh years around her start to echo Babbs' declaration. The Ministry officials tried to quiet the upset room of Hogwarts students by shouting over them, and Cassie locked eyes with McGonagall momentarily, who looked like she was about to burst into tears.

Finally, at Fudge's direction, one of the Aurors shot red firecrackers into the air, and the students started to quiet down slowly. "Enough of this!" Fudge said, absolutely exasperated at this point.

"I'm Head Girl," Fiona Jenour said then, folding her arms over her chest, looking quite authoritative as she addressed the Minister of Magic. "And I don't think my parents will be very happy if I don't take my exams. So what will it be, Minister? Would you like to tell them that we didn't take them? Because I'm speaking for _all_ of us now!"

Cassie wasn't sure what pull Fiona's parents had with the Ministry, but she was sure glad they did. Fudge gaped at her like a fish out of water for a few moments before speaking. "Fine! Black may sit for her exams!" Cheering erupted for a few moments, and Cassie happily started to make her way back to her desk. "But know this, girl," he said, looking pointedly at her as the room quieted down to listen to him now. "Don't even _bother_ applying for Auror training, as there will not be a spot for you working under _me!"_

"Minister Fudge," Cassie said then, giving him a small, sardonic smile, "I wouldn't work for the Ministry if you _begged_ me."

Fudge must have decided that there would be no further opportunity to arrest her then, because he started to order the Aurors out of the room; that, or he thought if he tried, the seventh years might eat him alive. Moody caught her eye before leaving, and he looked satisfied, matching Cassie's mood as he strode from the Great Hall. It pained her to know that she would never learn from him, never work with him. But at least he hadn't had to cart her off to prison today, either.

Testing started soon after, and although it was a bit awkward for Cassie and the examiners alike, it went on, none of them trying to stop her as she flew through the written part. As she turned in her finished papers, one of the officials looked at her like she was a particularly smelly piece of trash, but Cassie merely winked at her, feeling quite aloof to their treatment of her now. The next day, Cassie started the day with a renewed sense of determination to perform well, and she felt that she excelled at all of her practical portions, except for maybe the Potions section.

Of course, she knew at this point it really didn't matter what her scores ended up being. She was certain now that being an Auror was out of the question. While she hadn't fully agreed to Dumbledore's plan yet, because her fate with being able to apply for the Ministry program had still been up in the air, she now knew she was likely going to end up at the extended training through Castelobruxo. Just like Dumbledore had wanted.

After a small graduation celebration, the majority of the seventh years ended up in Hogsmeade, making their way to the Three Broomsticks for celebratory drinks and goodbyes before they left to start their adult lives. Cassie hadn't expected to go out with her graduating class upon completion of her NEWTs, not until they had shown such unity in their opposition towards the Ministry. Everyone was friendly towards one another as they reminisced, and few had anything good to say about Fudge when they offered her encouragement. It seemed many of them didn't understand the gravity of her situation, telling her to become an Auror whether the Minister liked it or not, as if it were that simple, but she appreciated their enthusiasm. In her entire time attending Hogwarts, she hadn't always felt accepted, but now she knew without a doubt, that even if she hadn't sensed it, she had always belonged.


End file.
